DEPUTY SHERIFF JOHN DEHART

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Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space:

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DAGGETT SHERIFF'S DEPUTY IS LAID TO REST
By Geoff Liesik

DESERET NEWS

Published: Sunday 04 January 2009

DUTCH JOHN, Daggett County, Utah

Law enforcement officers from around the Uintah Basin and neighboring Wyoming joined with this small community Saturday to say goodbye to Daggett County sheriff's deputy John DeHart.
 

 

Deputy Sheriff John DeHart, sixty-one years old, died at his home Monday from complications of esophageal cancer.

He was diagnosed in August with the disease, which was already in the advanced stages.

"He made a trip to the hospital because he couldn't swallow.

That was his first real big indication that something was wrong", said Daggett County Sheriff Rick Ellsworth before Saturday's memorial service.

"The doctors told him he'd probably had (cancer) for eight or nine years for it to be at the stage that it was at."

Sheriff Ellsworth said Deputy DeHart loved his job and the community he had served for nearly eleven years.

He said Deputy DeHart brought a calming influence to every situation he was involved in.

"He was steady and low-key", the sheriff said.

"He could defuse problems really fast."

Deputy DeHart served in the United States Air Force as a jet engine mechanic during the Vietnam era.

Later he worked as a security officer at the Tooele Army Depot for close to a decade, serving as a member of the base's Special Weapons And Tactics team.

Deputy DeHart's son, Ryan Sagers, said his father was a model of perseverance.

During a training exercise at the Army depot, John DeHart was severely injured in a truck crash.

He never fully recovered from the accident or a later incident where he suffered neck injuries after being hit in the head by a piece of heavy equipment during a construction job.

Instead of slowing down, John DeHart decided to join the sheriff's office after he and his wife moved to Daggett County.

Ryan Sagers said his father's only obstacle to becoming certified as a peace officer in Utah was passing the running portion of the physical fitness test.

"His knee and his other injuries had never fully healed. The pain was just absolutely excruciating", Ryan Sagers said.

"He tucked away the pain, he passed his test, and achieved the goal that meant so much to him. 

Most people who associated with him were never aware of the pain he was in."

John DeHart was also a compassionate man, Ryan Sagers said.

He remembered his father's affinity for offering help to the "neglected" kids in the neighborhood or befriending "people who the average person would avoid associating with."

"Everyone felt they were welcome in his home, regardless of their station in life", Ryan Sagers said.

"He explained it to me in a way that a child can understand: 'You don't need to be friends with them, but you do need to be friendly to them.'"

Following the memorial service, the hearse carrying Deputy DeHart was escorted by a procession of law enforcement and emergency vehicles for the ninety-six mile journey through Daggett, Uintah, and Duchesne counties to the Altamont Town Cemetery.

Two columns of deputies, officers, troopers and emergency medical technicians saluted Deputy DeHart's flag-draped casket as it was carried to the grave site.
                                        


An American Legion honor guard provided a twenty-one gun salute.

Then a dispatcher's voice crackled from the hand-held radios of those assembled to announce the end of watch for DELTA SEVEN before the solemn notes of taps began to echo across the frigid cemetery.

E-mail: geoff@ubstandard.com
© 2009 Deseret News Publishing Company All rights reserved ************************************
Reader comments:
DAGGETT SHERIFF'S DEPUTY IS LAID TO REST
Five Comments:

Reenie
0838 Sunday 04 January 2009
"An honorable man leading an honorable life.
My condolences to his family."

John Robert Mallernee
0931 Sunday 04 January 2009
"Greetings:

I was stunned to turn on my computer and read of the passing of John DeHart!

At first, I wondered if it could be the same guy?

But, as I read more details, there was no mistake.

John DeHart and I used to work together on the graveyard shift at Tooele Army Depot.

We both lived in West Valley, and would car pool together to and from work.

We were both LDS, and I've visited him and his family in their home.

I remember when he was so badly injured in that horrible midnight crash.

I thought he'd never be able to work again.

The last time I spoke with him, we were both in the waiting room at the VA Hospital in Salt Lake.

My, how the years fly by!

I can imagine how pleased he was to become a deputy sheriff in Daggett County!

What an achievement!

He has such a beautiful family.

By now, I reckon he's got grandkids.

I offer my sympathy and condolences to his loved ones.

Rest in peace, old friend."

Pleasant Grove, Utah
1302 Sunday 04 January 2009
"I just read the article about this kind gentleman.
He sounded as if he was a very stoic man and a most kind one as well.
The comment that stood out as I read about him is the one he taught his son about friends.
'You don't need to be friends with them, but you do need to be friendly to them.'
What a wonderful lesson that is applicable for all of us.
I will put that bit of advice in the forefront of my memory and will use it often.
Thank you for sharing that.
Condolences to the family."

Chris Summers
1321 Sunday 04 January 2009
"What an awesome individual you were, Deputy Dehart!!
Thanks for teaching everyone a little something."

Donna Sackett
2201 Sunday 04 January 2009

"John was an incredible man.
John, Noreen, and the kids are wonderful people.
As an ex-sister-in-law, John was a hero to me and my sons.
He was a good and gentle man who did care about everyone around him.
He opened his heart to my family even beyond my marriage to Noreen's brother.
His son, Ryan's eulogy was a true tribute to this man who followed Christ and his example.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Noreen, the kids, and grandkids."

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Thank you.

John Robert Mallernee, KB3KWS
Official Bard of Clan Henderson
Armed Forces Retirement Home
Washington, D.C. 20011-8400
 
NOTE: "My unpopular and controversial personal opinions are independent of my Scottish clan."

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