Crime & Safety
Family, Friends to Honor Fallen Cathedral City Policeman Next Friday at Palm Desert Eatery
TKB Bakery & Deli to donate 50 percent of event proceeds to the Officer Jermaine Gibson Memorial Fund.
A popular Palm Desert eatery will host a fund-raiser Friday, April 8, for the family of a Cathedral City police officer, who died in the line of duty two weeks ago.
The event at TKB Bakery & Deli is scheduled to run from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Officer Jermaine Gibson was killed in the early morning on March 19 when his patrol car slammed into a palm tree while he was chasing two suspects in a stolen car.
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He is survived by his widow and infant son.
Brandon Sippel said the restaurant, which is owned by his family, was one of Officer Gibson’s favorite places to eat.
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“He was a VIP at our deli … he'd come here all the time,” Sippel said.
Sippel added that he and his family decided to hold the fund-raiser after they attended Gibson’s funeral and have pledged to donate 50 percent of event proceeds to the Jermaine Gibson Memorial Fund.
Gibson’s March 25 funeral drew an estimated 2,000 people to the Southwest Community Church in Indian Wells.
Gibson, who lived in Beaumont, had been with the department for about 18 months and previously worked as a reserve officer with the Desert Hot Springs Police Department. He served two tours of duty in Iraq while in the Marine Corps and was awarded the Purple Heart.
TKB Bakery & Deli is located at 39420 Berkey Dr., just north of Interstate 10 near the Sun City community.
Other donations to the Jermaine Gibson Memorial Fund can be mailed to Post Office Box 1131, Cathedral City, Calif. 92235, or dropped off at the Cathedral City Police Department headquarters at City Hall.
