A legacy of love: Wicomico County remembers Cpl. Glenn Hilliard two years later
WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. – Wednesday marks two years since Wicomico County Sheriff’s Corporal Glenn Hilliard’s murder in the line of duty.
Wounds Still Fresh
Glenn lost his life while attempting to serve an arrest warrant in Pittsville. And while the anniversary brings painful memories, Glenn’s widow, Tashica, says she wants to use it to celebrate his life and legacy.
The wounds, however, are still fresh. Tashica says her life, and her children’s, has forever been altered.
“Navigating things, family functions, my children. My daughter graduated from high school this year, my son turning 14 years old, not having a father there, doing sports. Me, still waking up every morning to an empty bed where my best friend used to lie,” Tashica said.
Tashica’s new reality has a cloudy quality, she says. “[It’s like] living in the unknown, because I don’t know what the future brings. I don’t know this new life.”
A Hole in the Community
The loss of Glenn didn’t just impact Tashica’s family; she says it also left a hole in the community.
“So many people in the community still come up to me and say, ‘I know who you are, I haven’t forgotten. Your husband was a hero.’ That means so much,” Tashica said. “[But also,] I think a lot of people are afraid of opening a wound, or bringing something up and upsetting me. I live it every day. I don’t know that the wound will ever close. It’s always open. So, for me, someone reaching out and saying something to us just helps heal the wound a little bit more.”
Wednesday night, community members are gathering at the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #111 (FOP) to celebrate Glenn’s life. The event is being organized by Operation We Care, the FOP, and The Deli at Pecan Square.
“It would bring him so much joy, and such peace, knowing that so many people are coming out, not to mourn him, but to celebrate him,” Tashica said. “He would want this to be a celebration of, not just the sacrifices that he made, but the sacrifices that everyone made that night… It’s not just me and my family; the Sheriff’s Office lost a brother.”
“Glenn loved joy,”
Tashica says we can all learn a thing or two from the way that Glenn lived his life.
Glenn is fondly described as a fun-loving guy, who lived to get the people around him to smile. Tashica remembers that family members would often joke with the couple, asking how they each manage to find such a perfect match.
“Glenn loved joy, happiness,” Tashica beamed. “He didn’t hesitate to try and take any moment, sad or angry, and try to make it a joyful thing.”
However, Glenn was also all too aware of the fact that he was doing a dangerous job, says Tashica. She says they often had conversations about the risk he took in suiting up.
“Glenn would come home sometimes, 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning, and wake me up, and tell me about the events that occurred,” said Tashica. “He was happy and excited, and the more dangerous it was, the more excited he was. That’s just who he was. He wanted to be there to be able to help.”
Ultimate Sacrifice
And as painful as that was for Tashica to deal with, she says Glenn’s fellow first responders faced their own kind of grieving. She says thanking first responders shouldn’t just come in the face of tragedy, but on a daily basis.
“I know, for him, giving his life to save others, that’s what he signed up for,” Tashica said. “To see your brother lying there, knowing at any point it could be you, that’s a different hurt, a different mourning that I can’t understand.”
Healing Together
In learning how to move forward, Tashica says she learned a valuable lesson: like a bone that’s been broken, Wicomico County has a remarkable way of healing to be stronger than before.
“I want us all, every day, to remember this happened to our community. I feel like we are a better community for it happening, unfortunately, being able to come together,” Tashica reflected. “Enjoy each other, thank each other, spend a few minutes together. Remember that we are a proud community.”
