A family friend describes Fort Myers Police Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller as someone you could depend on no matter what.
Matt Gallup came to Fort Myers from New Jersey days after Officer Jobbers-Miller was shot to show his support for the officer and his family. He said the 11 days since the shooting have been an emotional rollercoaster.
"The pain is unimaginable. This is a parent's worst nightmare," Gallup said. "They received some news that looked positive, and it looked like the prognosis was going to be positive outcome that would be good for Adam and the family, and ultimately Adam passed away."
Gallup said the support from the Southwest Florida first responders, loved ones, and strangers has been like nothing he's ever seen before.
"People were visiting their family members in the hospital and there wasn't a single elevator ride I was on that someone didn't ask 'How's the officer doing? Is he doing well? Please give our best to him. He's our hero,'" he said.
Gallup said he met Officer Jobbers-Miller and his family when they lived in New Jersey. He came to Fort Myers with shadow boxes of patches from Wayne Police and Wayne Fire, where Jobbers-Miller was a firefighter for six years. His dad was also a chief there, but when he retired, he said the family moved to Fort Myers for Adam's job with the police department.
"This was a dream for Adam, law enforcement was his passion. This was his life goal, and he accomplished it," he said.
Officer Jobbers-Miller's passing wasn't his family's first loss; in his application to work at FMPD, Jobbers-Miller said his number one goal was to remove drug dealers from the streets because his brother died from an overdose.
Gallup said Officer Jobbers-Miller will go down in history as a hero who made the ultimate sacrifice.
"Adam's not coming back. Adam was robbed of his future. But he understood that. And that was his commitment to this society and this community. And he knew it. And he'd do it again. If Adam was here and he knew what was going to happen to him, he'd do it again. Because that's who he is. That's what he stands for," Gallup said.
Gallup said he's worked in Law Enforcement for almost 30 years and said the blue line community is so strong, he's been getting text messages from officers as far away as Spain, South America, and Australia.
