Fitting Tribute to a great man. Friends of Trooper Eric Ellsworth put up this memorial marker jon private land adjacent to I-15 NB just north of the Weber/Box Elder county line. Very impressive message of you will never be forgotten. With Peace Office... by Lee Perry
Box Elder Communications Center-BECC
memorial honoring Utah Highway Patrol trooper Eric Ellsworth has been put up in Box Elder County right off I-15. A family decided to build this on their own property with their own money.
Jay Dortzbach, KSL TV
Jay Dortzbach, KSL TV
WILLARD, Box Elder County — A memorial honoring Utah Highway Patrol trooper Eric Ellsworth has been put up in Box Elder County right off of I-15 near Willard.
This memorial was put up Monday on private property by a family who spent their own money to do it. They don't want to be identified or even interviewed, they just want Ellsworth to be remembered.
The cross with his name on it is big — 20 feet tall and 12 feet wide. Two American flags and a thin blue line flag are behind it, as well as lights so it can be seen at night.
“It’s just, I mean, it’s beautiful,” UHP Lt. Lee Perry said. “It sends a message that, you know what? Eric is gone, but he will never be forgotten.”
Ellsworth, badge 395 with the Utah Highway Patrol, was hit by a car on Nov. 18 while trying to direct other vehicles around a traffic hazard along a rural stretch of state Route 13 at 13600 North near Garland, Box Elder County. He was hit by a 16-year-old girl, described by the UHP as a "new driver." Both Ellsworth's family and the UHP have each offered forgiveness to the young girl, saying they realize this was truly an accident.
