‘A void and pain in our hearts.’ North Carolina deputy dies after battle with COVID
A North Carolina sheriff’s office is mourning the loss of a “dedicated and loyal” deputy.
Master Cpl. Deputy Sheriff Norman Daye died at his Guilford County home Saturday after recently leaving a local hospital where he was receiving treatment for the coronavirus, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a news release posted to Facebook on Sunday.
He had been with the sheriff’s office for 16 years and previously served in the U.S. Marine Corps, the post says.
“Master Corporal Daye defined public service and patriotism,” the sheriff’s office wrote.
The Facebook post describes Daye as “dedicated and loyal” and said he had a “passion to serve his community.”
Prior to his 16-year tenure with the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office, Daye got his start in law enforcement at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Hillsborough, North Carolina.
“COVID has taken a dear friend from our ranks,” Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood wrote Saturday on Facebook. “Norman left us several years ago to go to work for the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office and many of us have fond memories of his years of dedicated service here in Orange County.”
Blackwood said Daye’s death “leaves a void and pain in our hearts.”
“Please keep his family, and his extended family in Guilford County in your thoughts and prayers,” he wrote on Facebook. “Rest Easy Brother.”
The Guilford County Sheriff’s Office lost another deputy in October, McClatchy News reported. Deputy LaKiya Rouse died Oct. 21 “due to medical-related issues” after testing positive for COVID-19.
Rouse had worked as a bailiff at the Guilford County Courthouse in Greensboro.
Guilford County EMS also posted about Daye’s death on Twitter.
“Our hearts go out to our brothers and sisters in the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office as they grieve the loss of one of their own,” it tweeted Saturday.
His funeral arrangements are pending, the sheriff’s office says.
More than 436,000 coronavirus cases and 5,823 deaths have been reported in North Carolina as of Sunday, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
Cases have been on the rise in the state, with more than 6,800 reported Sunday.