The Santa Clarita community gathered to support the family of slain Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer, who was killed while on duty in Palmdale in September.
Throughout Saturday afternoon and evening, Pocock Brewing Company held a fundraiser, where local families, as well as dignitaries, paid their respects and honored the deputy.
“The fundraiser we’re doing is raising money for the family of Deputy Clinkunbroomer. Hopefully we can just raise a lot of money to help take care of some things,” said Todd Tisdell, co-owner of Pocock. “We’re super happy to be a part of this. We’ve always been very supportive of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Department — they are an organization that is very important out here, and we wanted to make sure that we can help.”
Gloria Aguirre, who is associated with We Are LASD Wives, played an integral role in organizing the event for the family. Aguirre was out of town on Sept. 16, when the tragic event occurred, but came straight to Pocock once back in Santa Clarita.
“When we arrived into town, we came straight to here. Todd approached me separately, [saying] ‘Just so you know, if there’s anything that you need, we’re here for you,’” Aguirre said.
Taking him up on his offer, Aguirre wanted to create a fundraiser, since she had known the family personally for years.
“[Clinkunbroomer] is not just a badge, he’s a personal friend and he was an amazing human being that needs to be acknowledged,” Aguirre said. “Once I got approval, it took me less than 48 hours to plan everything, because I already knew exactly how I wanted it.”
Along with coordinating with the deputy’s mother, Kim Clinkunbroomer, Aguirre also had the support of We Are LASD Wives.
“I reached out to them that I was planning this. Immediately, they’re like, ‘What do you need?’ They were my backbone through all of this, my support, making sure it was promoted and that everything ran through ’til that night,” Aguirre said.
Tisdell and Aguirre reflected on the camaraderie within the community, stating that the great turnout of 1,000 people throughout the day, many of whom were deputies, exceeded expectations.
“Our small community is a big family and we will support each other no matter what,” Aguirre said.
Kim expressed her appreciation in receiving an outpouring of support from the Santa Clarita community.
“We want to say thank you to Pocock Brewery for all their support during this awful time. They have been very supportive, as have the community. The outpour of love has been tremendous, and we can probably never thank everybody [again],” Kim said. “Thank you seems shallow these days, but know from the bottom of our hearts that it’s truly heartfelt and we couldn’t be surviving right now without that.”
