LAKEWOOD, Colo. — Fallen Lakewood Police agent Nicholas Graham, who will be honored with a procession and memorial service on Thursday, is being remembered by his department.
“He was the goofiest guy in the room, but just...—he had a heart on him and he wanted to bring everyone together,” said Lakewood Police Sgt. Zach Cook in a video tribute released by the department on Wednesday. “And he was always about trying to just be a team, and he wanted to make sure that everybody was there to excel and exceed.”
Watch Denver7 reporter Ryan Fish's story on this tribute in the video below:
Graham, who was 33, died in the line of duty when he was killed in a shootout with a suspect on an RTD bus last week.
The department says Sgt. Cook’s tribute was released at the request of Graham’s family in order to “celebrate Nick's legacy and share the impact he made on his fellow agents and the Lakewood community.”
“When something like this happens, you cannot prepare for it,” Sgt. Cook said. “Leaning into that, life is short.”
In the video, Sgt. Cook says he wants people to remember, “there's somebody behind the badge.”
“He was a family man,” Sgt. Cook recalled. “He was playing with his kid. He took care of his wife, he hung out with his friends, he, you know, he was watching sports, he was just like everybody else.”
Though he also says Graham was far from ordinary.
“The community lost a champion that night that was willing to go out and fight the fights that they may not be able to,” Cook said. “Nick was gonna lead the way and do it… He was gonna raise those young officers into great officers and he was gonna work tirelessly. Lakewood lost a mentor, a friend, a leader. They just lost an incredible person.”
But Graham’s influence is not going away.
“As a Christian, while it hurts, I’m looking forward to seeing Nick again. I know I'm going to see Nick again,” Sgt. Cook added. “We will not let his memories fade into history. He is going to be someone that is going to be remembered and talked about, and he's going to be that example for the rest of the time that I am here at this department. He will be someone that I look up, that I look up to help me continue that fight and continue that push for good.”
When asked what Graham’s response would be, Sgt. Cook smiled.
“I think he would just tell us to carry on, continue to fight, get through this, slow down, have a beer, it's going to be OK,” he said.
WATCH | Eastern Plains towns glow blue to honor fallen Lakewood Police Agent Nicholas Graham:
