RIP Ray Simmons

Mrs. Ray as we called him was a great man. We all loved him. He had hard times in his life, but we all do! Everyone will miss Mr. Ray, but my cousin and I will always have him in our heart!
I love you Mrs. Ray
I know that your family, McKenna and Peyton, and your friends and or neighbors will always remember you.[/b]

My husband and I have known Ray for many years.We truly wish that we could have been there for him in this time that he found to hard to handle on his own,but instead we find ourselves extending our hand out to our law enforcement family ,friends and most importantly Ray's family .

may you rest in peace ,Ray.

for those of you who find yourself in a difficult time ..PLEASE,remember that we are all human and are not perfect... so reach out... we WILL BE THERE FOR YOU now and forever..

heartbroken friends in tampa,fl

To one of the finest cops I ever had the privilege to work with. You always led by example, and managed to keep everybody laughing at the same time. Like the posting before mine, I will never forget the phrase “hello nice lady.” You were also a friend to my family outside the workplace. On behalf of myself, my mother, my father, my sister, and my brother-in-law, you will be greatly missed by the Ward family. Rest in peace Ray.

Ray looked out for a lot of us. I began riding with Ray 10 years ago when I was a Student Asst at the S/O. This was when he was working Era. The first time I rode with him I knew I wanted to be a k9 Officer. Ray was one of those guys that everyone wanted to be around. He is who you wanted with you if you needed backup and he is the supervisor everyone wanted to work for. I am sure he will continue to look out for all of us, and I am sure we will all be telling Ray Simmons Stories for years to come....

May he rest in the arms of the angels...

Sometimes when a cop sleeps,
the demons come.
The demons bring all the things you want to forget.

The demons bring the tears and sweat,
the spit and the blood,
Oh God the blood.

The demons bring the broken bodies from the wrecks
the sickening smell of death
and the kids...Oh God please, not the kids.

Mainly the demons bring the eyes...

the hatred and desperation in the eyes of the people you fight,
the pleading and pain of the people you try to help,
and the quiet and blankness in death of the ones you couldn't.

The demons bring sounds too....

the sounds of tires skidding and metal crunching from the wrecks,
the gunshots that seem so loud on TV yet so muffled on the street,
the screams and crying that all blend together after a while.

The demons won't leave...
Alcohol and sleeping pills work for a while
but they come back.

Some have used their own deaths to flee from them,
but most of us are scared that in causing our own death....
we'll be with them forever.

But the demons aren't all that bad,
it's better for the demons to come in your sleep,
than for the angels to come during your shift.

(they say that if you're time comes on the job,
your fallen brothers come back to take you home)

So the next time you see a cop having a bad day and he seems irritated,
and you think "What a jerk!"
Stop for a moment and wonder:

What demons came to him last night or what new ones did he meet today?

By

Amanda

Criminal Justice Student

[

[spaxson]

I got to meet Ray during a school and some training. You could tell Ray was a hard charger and he took everything in he was told. Ray you will be missed by many including me. It is a sad day on the streets know I lost a friend. Our prayers or with his family and friends!!!!

My heart is broken for you, Ray. I can't imagine how much pain and sadness could have brought you to this point. You gave so much of yourself to everyone. You were everyone's helper and protector. You were my friend and I love you.

I pray that you are safe and secure in God's hands and you don't have to hurt anymore

I spoke with Ray on Thanksgiving night, he called me about a missing adult. Ray was the example of a perfect COP. He had the demeanor to handle any situation given and he and Rodney Eddins together would make Larry the Cable Guy laugh and blush. You will be always remembered and thought of highly in this agency. God Bless you and your family!!

Ray was my college friend, my family friend, the one responsible for my husband and I dating and he was a brother in law enforcement. He took me on my first ride out, he made me laugh at all the wrong times during class, and as my brother and someone else said earlier, he forever cemented the phrase, "Hello, nice lady" in my head! When we got the call about what happened, the tears were shed and my family and I grieved for this terrible loss. But all the while, the Ray Ray stories kept slipping in and the laughter took the place of the tears. And now as we are missing his presence on this earth, we are certain that he is with us still, as is evident by all of these heartfelt posts. How amazing that one person could leave such an imprint on so many people. Ray Ray had his flaws, like we all do, but he lived his life the best he could and we are all better people for having known him, no matter how brief that may have been. To my fellow LEO officers, I know you are all suffering greatly and from what my brother has said, Ray was the kind of Lt. that backed up his guys/gals and fought the battles that needed to be fought. To Ray's wife, children and other family, your loss is the greatest and it is our duty as his extended family and friends to surround you with our love, warmth and support. Please know that you are thought of dearly and prayed for.

Rest easy Ray Ray.....and keep the crude jokes to a minimum, I think they frown on that up there! We love you dearly friend; you will be missed greatly.

[MGilmore251]

The last line of Supporter's post was nice but that was about all. Looks like a cheap shot at throwing a political dart,and it's not the time nor the place for it. Go somewhere else with that stuff. This thread is about remembering Ray Simmons,not questioning his motives ,reasoning or stability. Mod can you delete that post please?