ECTOR COUNTY, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- On Monday, the Ector County Sheriff’s Office said goodbye to one of their own; Corporal David Core, who died last week, was laid to rest amid his family, both off and on the job. 

“Everybody is sad, especially those that he worked with day in and day out. When you work on a shift with any of these folks, they become your family…you spend more awake time with these people than you do at home and they become your family,” said Sheriff Mike Griffis.

While Griffis is saddened by the loss, he said he’s also grateful for the outpouring of love his office has received from the community. 

“It’s very heartwarming to me, to know that the community…is so supportive of law enforcement and those that do the job they do each and every day,” he said. 

Core joined the ECSO family in 2019 but began his law enforcement career in New Mexico in the 1990s, where he began working at the San Juan Detention Center in Aztec, New Mexico. In 2004, he switched careers, and moved to Odessa to work in the oilfield. His family said his love for law enforcement never wavered, which inspired him to return to that career; that’s when he decided to join ECSO, where he worked in the Detention Center; he was promoted to Corporal in May, just four months before his death.

If you’d like to help Core’s family, including his son, three daughters, and young grandson, an account has been established at the Southwest 66 Credit Union. To donate, just reference account number 142896-0.