The Florida Highway Patrol recently unveiled its new statewide Honor Guard, which consists of thirty-seven members. The Honor Guard is divided into three regions - North, Central, and South. Members were recommended by their chain of command and selected by the Colonel.

The first Honor Guard training camp began August, 20, 2009, at the Florida Highway Patrol Training Academy. The training consisted of ceremonial drills that included facing movements, Manual of Arms for the rifle team, Presentation of Colors, flag folding, funeral and memorial service protocols with plenty of close order drills.

During the course of their training, each member received their Honor Guard equipment. However, they are anxiously awaiting their newly authorized dress jackets, which were purchased for the Florida Highway Patrol Honor Guard by the FHP Advisory Council.

The Honor Guard mission is to:

• Coordinate and attend funeral ceremonial duties for in state and out of state officers killed in the line of duty
• Coordinate and attend local and national memorial services for law enforcement officers
• Act as a clearinghouse for the Department and Division regarding ceremonial protocol matters
• Perform other functions as deemed appropriate by the Colonel
• To represent the Florida Highway Patrol with a well trained ceremonial unit to render honor, respect, preserve traditions, promote esprit-de-corps and instill pride

The Honor Guard consists of the following members:

North Region Honor Guard Members: Sergeant Anthony Stone * Sergeant Nicholas Causey * Corporal Trerrance Chukes Trooper Philip Delgado Trooper Anthony Dobosiewicz Trooper Michael Elder Corporal Ben Glass Trooper Karen Howard Trooper William Lundy Corporal Brandon Overstreet Trooper Michael Stallworth Trooper Maria Torres

Central Region Honor Guard Members: Sergeant Dennis Hobbs * Corporal Tom Dewitt * Trooper Howard Arnold Trooper Bobby Carbon Trooper Sonya Chapman Trooper Hector Colon Trooper Jeremy Fields Trooper Darryl Haywood Trooper Deryck Lewis Trooper Amanda Meyer Trooper Jason Spann Trooper Benjamin Weaver

South Region Honor Guard Members: Sergeant Luis Tejera * Sergeant Dwayne Cooper * Trooper Yamil Acevedo Trooper Scott Gardner Trooper Jessica Jimenez Trooper Mark Marcus Trooper Matthew Mihm Trooper Kenneth Piegari Trooper Eduardo Rivera Trooper Mellow Scheetz Trooper Yosvany Segui Corporal Ray Wigfall

* Honor Guard Team Leaders

Honor Guard Commander: Lieutenant Jose “Joe” L. Lopez

The Honor Guard will represent the men and women of the Florida Highway Patrol through their unbridled dedication and commitment to duty and honor.