Maria Ressa, the Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Pays a Visit to Toms River
February 19, 2022After a Car Accident in Manchester, NJ, a 21-year-old Howell Man is in Critical Condition
February 20, 2022
Brian D. Stockhoff was honored with a procession from the funeral home to the Ocean County Police Academy on Saturday Morning
On February 19th, Ocean County Sheriff's Officer Brian Stockhoff was laid to rest. Friends, family, and fellow law enforcement officers came to remember and say goodbye. Madison Stockhoff was one of the younger attendees, but she had some words of wisdom to share.
Hundreds of mourners were obviously sad, but his young daughter claimed that's not what he would have wanted. He'd want them to remember how much he made them laugh and smile.
"So whenever you miss him, just think of a memory," Madison advised. "That's exactly what my dad would have wanted."
Stockhoff, 41, was killed in an automobile accident outside the Leisure Village East subdivision in Lakewood on Feb. 14 when his Toyota Sienna collided with a brick wall. At the time of his death, he was driving his personal vehicle and was not on job.
He was laid to rest Saturday, with vehicles from every police department in Ocean County, as well as a few departments and Sheriff's Offices from around the state, accompanying him on the five-mile journey from a Brick funeral home to a memorial service at the Ocean County Police Academy.
He is survived by his wife, Heather Rose Stockhoff of Jackson, and their two children, Brody and Madison, as well as his parents, Robert and Christine, four brothers, and several nieces and nephews, according to his obituary.
A quarter mile of Route 88 was surrounded by flashing blue and red lights from the vehicles before the enormous convoy left the Colonial Funeral Home. Onlookers and rubberneckers came to a halt, pointing to the image of the smiling police officer riding a horse, which was shown digitally on a signboard by the sheriff's office.
Since joining the Ocean County Sheriff's Office's mounted squad in 2014, Stockhoff has become one of the department's most known deputies, first with his horse Sambuca and then with Kianti.
Kianti, huffing and pulling away from five officers, was the last to enter Ocean County Park for Stockhoff’s ceremony, capped off with a 21-gun salute and a final radio call for badge No. 143, Stockhoff’s number.
