Foundation honoring slain officer helps county law enforcement agencies

Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies are better equipped to do their jobs, thanks to some donations from the Capt. David Dorn Foundation.

Ann Dorn and Gary Foster, who represent the foundation, showed up June 3 at the Sheriff’s Office in Hillsboro with two vehicles packed with equipment for the agency’s deputies.

Once the pickup and SUV were unloaded, the Sheriff’s Office had 170 new equipment bags, and each one contained eye and ear protection to be used at the shooting range, as well as a trauma kit that included a tourniquet and Vaseline gauze.

Those bags will go to the 170 deputies who work on road patrol, Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak said.

“They have donated a lot to our department,” said Cpl. Zach Faulkner of the Sheriff’s Office. “The department provides us with a lot of gear to do our job, but there are a lot of out-of-pocket expenses to do our jobs. For them to give us these donations to better ourselves and ease our own financial burden is special.”

Ann Dorn, 52, of Imperial started the foundation this year to provide first-responder agencies with equipment they may not be able to buy because of budget restraints.

“I do this in memory of my husband,” said Dorn, 52, the widow of David Dorn, a retired St. Louis Metropolitan Police officer who was shot and killed on June 2, 2020, while trying to stop looting at a pawn shop in the 4100 block of Martin Luther King Drive in The Ville neighborhood during protests following the death of George Floyd.

Dorn was 77 when he was killed.

His widow, Ann Dorn, a former St. Louis Police officer, is president of the foundation.

“I know first responders struggle with not being appreciated, and some agencies can’t afford the equipment. They can give them the basics, but don’t have the luxuries of a nice flashlight and other things they can really use on a day-to-day basis,” she said. “If we can donate those things, they don’t have to take money away from their children or from groceries to feed their families.”

Foster, who also worked for the St. Louis Police Department, is the foundation’s vice president.

Other donations

In April, the foundation donated 170 Streamlight flashlights to the Sheriff’s Office.

The Capt. David Dorn Foundation also recently donated bags filled with equipment to two other Jefferson County law enforcement agencies.

The foundation donated 10 bags with flashlights, hearing and eye protection, trauma kits and a tactical handcuff key to the Byrnes Mill Police Department on May 31, and the group donated 15 bags with the same equipment to the Herculaneum Police on June 3.

Byrnes Mill Police Chief Frank T. Selvaggio said he was astounded by what the foundation provided for his 10 full-time officers. He said the equipment cost about $2,500.

“It’s a morale boost for the officers to know that people in the community are thinking about them, taking care of them with needed equipment,” Selvaggio said. “It gives me room in my budget to buy other equipment down the road.”

Faulkner echoed Selvaggio’s sentiments, adding that he knows firsthand how important a trauma kit can be for officers.

Faulkner was wounded May 28, 2021, during a shootout with murder suspect Anthony Legens, 36, at a home in the Cedar Hill area. Legens was killed in the shootout.

After Faulkner was shot, he was hospitalized until June 7, 2021, and returned to the Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 20, 2021. He was cleared for full duty Dec. 21, 2021.

“It never hurts to have the extra things that may save a life,” Faulkner said. “Something as simple as a tourniquet may be the difference between life and death. Now everyone has one.”

Crystal City Capt. Mike Pruneau said his department expects to receive a similar donation from the foundation.

“It will help quite a bit,” Pruneau said. “A lot of times it is just the thought that people are donating to police officers and saying thanks that makes an impact.”

The foundation

Stephan Cannon, 25, has been charged with several felonies in connection with the looting of the St. Louis shop and the shooting death of David Dorn.

Cannon is scheduled to go to trial July 18.

Ann Dorn said the foundation has helped her deal with the loss of her husband.

She also said the foundation has donated items to Moline Acres Police, where her husband served as chief following his retirement after a 38-year career with the St. Louis Police Department.

“David had a long history of taking care of his officers. He was the policeman’s policeman. He loved taking care of his officers and community. I wanted to give back,” she said.

Dorn and Foster said the foundation focuses on smaller law enforcement agencies that may not be able to purchase all the equipment officers need.

“We are very passionate that the equipment we purchase goes to the police officers,” said Foster, 59, of Herculaneum. “That prevents them from taking money out of their own pocket to buy equipment that we used to have to buy.”

Dorn and Foster said they meet with law enforcement agencies to find out what their needs are, but they also use their own experiences as police officers to guide donations.

Foster said the equipment bags recently donated to Jefferson County law enforcement officers may cost up to $90 each, the flashlights $100 or more each, the trauma kits about $40 each, the hearing protection about $20 each and the eye protection approximately $15 each.

Foster, who retired as a sergeant after working for the St. Louis Police Department for 32 years, said his and Ann Dorn’s experience with the St. Louis Police Foundation, which works to benefit the St. Louis Police Department, gave them the idea to start their organization.

“They asked the officers ‘what can we do for you guys; what do you need?’ They gave us things like flashlights, good winter coats that the department or city either couldn’t or wouldn’t provide.”

Dorn said the foundation has donated some equipment to firefighters, and she hopes to do more as the nonprofit grows.

“But we can’t without donations and the support of the community,” she said. “The more we get, the more we can do. 100 percent of the proceeds go to officers who are on the ground and answering calls. It is a labor of love and in honor of Dave. He was my soulmate and best friend.”

Donations may be made to the foundation through its Facebook page, website (captdaviddornfoundation.com) or by calling 314-791-9488.