Two days after the funeral for a deputy’s wife and young children, Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch Monday expressed his gratitude to the public for its support.
In a note posted to social media, Sheriff Couch thanked the citizens of Hall County “and beyond.”
“Please consider this my personal thank you for the outpouring of love and concern for Hall County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Neil Holtzclaw in the devastating loss of his wife Avonlea and two young children Colton and Madeline.
Whether you lifted a prayer, wrote a card, placed a phone call, made a financial donation or simply offered a kind word to someone at our agency on behalf of Deputy Holtzclaw, I thank you,” the sheriff wrote.
Sheriff Couch referenced the strength that Deputy Holtzclaw displayed at his family’s funeral service, calling him “a strong young man.”
“Even so, he will need your continued prayers as he navigates the future, and so will other members of his family,” the sheriff said.
Couch urged the public to remember that parents lost their daughter and grandparents lost their grandchildren on July 16.
“I know you’ll continue to remember all of them in the coming days,” he wrote.
The sheriff also thanked fellow first responders from around the region “who have surrounded the Holtzclaw family in the past week, offering help every step of the way.
It is a blessing to live and work in an area where the people continually support each other. I appreciate our community more than you know.”
Crash still under investigation
The violent wreck that claimed the Holtzclaws also killed two others—Mitchell Boggs, 58, of Marietta, and another man identified by family and friends as Seyhan Kilincci of Roswell.
The Georgia State Patrol is investigating the crash which occurred on GA 365 at Mt. Zion Road. It’s the same intersection where a 5-year-old boy and his aunt died in October 2021.
Lawmakers and local law enforcement met with state transportation officials last week to discuss ways to improve safety along that stretch of highway.
