Remembering the man, Captain Mike Stokes

A much beloved member of the Houston County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) family has passed away as a result of COVID-19. This, just a few days after another of the county’s law enforcement officers was laid to rest after losing a battle to the same. The air at the sheriff’s office on Monday was thick with disbelief and grief as the word reached them that their brother in blue had become one of the cruel disease’s latest casualties.

Captain Michael “Mike” Stokes, age 57, was a husband, father, and a servant of the people. According to HCSO Sheriff Cullen Talton, Stokes had been a member of the Houston County Sheriff’s Office for 32 years. As the longest sitting sheriff in the entire state of Georgia, Talton has seen many men and women come into HCSO over the decades, but he said that Stokes was, by far, a standout member of the department

The sheriff became overwhelmed with emotion during his brief interview with Houston Home Journal on Monday, August 30. Stokes had just passed away earlier the same day. The news was still fresh, but Talton indicated that time would not necessarily heal this wound.

“We will never get over the loss of Mike Stokes; he was just an all around great person and an outstanding officer,” Talton shared. “He started out as a patrolman and he worked his way up to head of the Warrant Division and also head of the SWAT team,” he further recounted.

Stokes had been placed in the hospital in Hawkinsville, Georgia a few weeks ago, based on Sheriff Talton’s shared information. “He had gotten a little better and went home, but he was only at home for about half a day before he had to go back.”

Talton recalled the last time he had a conversation with Stokes. It was just this past August, at the Sheriff’s Summer Conference. Stokes participated in the event and played an active role in presenting two fellow law enforcement officers with plaques for their bravery and service.

“We were down in Savannah at the sheriff’s convention and Mike was down there along with two other officers that were getting an award. Mike introduced them. He sat at the table and we talked. That’s the last time I really talked to Mike.”

Houston Home Journal had sat down to talk with Stokes after that same conference. At that time, the captain praised Sergeant James Spivey and Deputy Doug Blackmon who had been hailed for rescuing and saving the life of a child who had been held hostage.

“They’re phenomenal deputies, and they’re phenomenal operators on the team,” Stokes had said of the two heroes. “They just don’t come any better than those two.”

The words that Talton said about Stokes on Monday said much of the same about him. “Mike was one of the best of the best,” the sheriff said. “He was just an all around good guy, and he’s going to be sorely missed around here.”

To Talton’s understanding, Stokes was placed on the ventilator in the early morning hours of August 30 but he did not live long afterward. It wasn’t the ending that they hoped for or expected.

Captain Clay Chambers of HCSO spent most of Monday with Stokes’ family, trying to encourage and support them as much as possible. After leaving the family home, Chambers shared the family’s status with The Journal. “Naturally, they are grief-stricken and shocked about the loss. They are trying to cope and figure out what they’re going to do without him. He was their rock, so they’re trying to figure out how they’re going to grieve and then get on without him.”

For the entire time that Chambers has worked for HCSO, he has worked with Captain Stokes. For 22 years, they have been serving the citizens of Houston County together. “He was there when I got there,” Chambers said. “I actually worked under him for a while when I worked in the traffic division. Sheriff Talton has been there for the whole time that Mike was there. He knows him better than all of us. It has hit us all hard, but him probably hardest of all.”

Chambers could be right. It was a challenge for Sheriff Talton to even put his words together at times. As he finished his time of speaking to The Journal, the sheriff could no longer hold back his tears.

“Everybody is so down and out,” Talton said in a voice broken by emotions. “You know how it is when you lose somebody like that. It’s just got us all upset, but all we can do is trust in the Lord. It’s just like losing a member of your family. As a matter of fact, it is losing a member of your family,” he stressed. “Mike was our family. We’re all family here.”

The annual golf tournament that the sheriff’s office puts on this year will be dedicated to the memory of Captain Mike Stokes.

The funeral for Stokes has been set for 11:00 a.m. on Friday, September 3 at Southside Baptist Church. The family will receive friends from 5:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 2 at McCullough Funeral Home who has been entrusted with the final arrangements. Stokes will be laid to rest in Dooly County. Visit www.mcculloughfh.com to sign the online registry for the family.

HHJ News