GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. -- Zach Cox was 5 years old when knew his destiny.
It was his birthday party. A toy gun strapped on his hip, a little flashlight in hand and a whistle between his lips, Cox stood resolute in his family's front yard directing the traffic.
Wielding his flashlight and sounding his whistle at the cars pulling in, Cox focused on showing arriving guests where to park safely instead of the birthday cake, ice cream and presents awaiting him inside.
From that early age, he was a common sight in his makeshift sheriff's deputy uniform in their yard directing neighborhood traffic on the rural dirt road nearby.
"I've never seen anybody as focused on what he wanted to do, as Zach," Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler said. "He's never deviated from knowing what he wanted. He wanted to be a law enforcement officer. He's a natural for this honor."
Cox, now 19, of Green Cove Springs, is the first recipient of the Detective Dave White Law Enforcement Scholarship, which memorializes the deputy killed in the line of duty while investigating a meth lab last year. The scholarship also serves as a legacy honoring the integrity, positive lifestyle and selfless dedication to serving the community that were the hallmarks of White's life and career. Cox never met White. But from everything Cox said he has heard, he believes the detective set a high standard for all law enforcement officers.
"They are putting me through the academy in memory of him. So when I become a deputy, it's in honor of his life," Cox said. "... I definitely have some big shoes to fill."
Up to $3,300, the scholarship helps pay for the recipient to attend the St. Johns River State College's Basic Law Enforcement Academy. Cox reports to the academy Monday for training that will continue through Dec. 16. Cox earned the scholarship after completing the application, which included writing an essay, and excelling at the personal interview.
The fallen detective's widow, Jennifer White, serves on the scholarship committee, along with representatives from the Sheriff's Office, Orange Park and Green Cove Springs police departments and the academy.
White noted her late husband "was a straight arrow" and that was the type of person they were looking for to give the scholarship. They immediately recognized Cox as that person, said Mary Justino, Sheriff's Office spokeswoman.
A Clay County High School graduate, Cox now serves as a civilian control room operator in the Clay County jail.
He is the first of his family in law enforcement, although his grandmother, Sara Spurrier, served as an administrative assistant in the Public Defender's Office. As a young child, Cox accompanied Spurrier to the courthouse, where the bailiffs and sheriff's deputies became his earliest mentors.
At first the uniforms caught his eyes, then the bailiffs took him under their wing. As he grew up, watching "Cops" every Saturday night on television was a ritual. "I've always just been astonished by what they do as far as helping people, catching the bad guys and bringing people to justice," Cox said.
His parents, Kim and James Cox, who work for the county school system, initially thought their son was going through a stage that he would grow out of, but he stuck with it. At 12, Cox joined the Junior Cadet Program of Sheriff's Office Explorer Post 987, designed for youths interested in law enforcement careers. He worked his way up through the ranks to retire as a major last year after seven years in the Explorer post.
He began volunteering with the Sheriff's Office in 2010. Between his Explorer service and volunteer work, Cox has learned the ropes from Sheriff's Office personnel in the various divisions including patrol, records and investigations. In 2011, he was hired part time in the records division and then went to work in the jail because its schedule accommodated his college classes.
The experience, he said, has been invaluable. It's only reinforced his goal of becoming a Clay deputy, said Cox, who's set his sights on becoming a K-9 unit officer.
"I've never thought about doing anything else."
Copyright 2013 - The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville
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