Saving A Hero’s Place: Chair in honor of Allen Bares Jr. presented to family, Sheriff’s Office

Next month will mark five years since Vermilion Parish Sheriff’s Deputy Allen Bares Jr. gave his life in the line of duty.
He is not forgotten, as Bares remains forever in the hearts and minds of his family, friends and those with whom he served. Many of the people who hold a special place for Bares gathered Monday morning at the Sheriff’s Office training center to dedicate a place for him.
Through Saving A Hero’s Place, Inc., an Honor Chair has been placed front and center in the training’s center’s room. Saving a Hero’s Place is a non-profit organization in the state of Texas whose mission is to remember fallen American law enforcement officers with custom-built honor chairs meant to stand the test of time and forever hold the place of the fallen hero.
“It’s an honor for them to do this,” Bares’ widow, Tina, said. “It’s for the family, but it is also for the department.
“It’s so that Allen will never be forgotten.”
Walter Henning, a member of the San Antonio Police Department and manager of Saving A Hero’s Place, Inc., delivered the chair from Texas to Vermilion Parish on Monday, as each chair is hand delivered. Bares’ chair is now one of 89 honoring fallen officers in 17 states. It is the second one in Louisiana, along with a chair for Cpl. Michael Middlebrook of the Lafayette Police Department.
Henning said the origin of Saving A Hero’s Place came from simply honoring a fellow fallen officer in San Antonio.
“We have roll call in our department every day,” Henning said. “We all sit in the same spot every day. That’s our chair. We sit next to the same guys every day. We lost one of our guys and his chair was always going to be empty. One of our other guys who is a woodworker built a chair and it was placed in the spot during roll call.
“That seat was his and will always be his.”
Allen Bares Jr.’s died on June 23, 2014, after being shot while responding to an incident on his day off. Sheriff’ Mike Couvillon said he will never forget that day.
“When I look at that date,” Couvillon said, “I can tell you exactly what I was doing that day. I think everyone in this room can tell you what they were doing that day. With this chair, we are going to think about Allen every day. We thank you (Saving A Hero’s Place).
“This is a blessing.”
Col. Kirk Frith echoed the Sheriff’s sentiment.
“Allen is forever in our memory,” Frith said. “With the fast pace of everyday life, we don’t think about him every day. What this chair does, because this is the place all deputies come to train, when you walk in this building, you will be reminded and we will think about our fallen hero, Deputy Allen Bares Jr.
“Thank you very much and this is great what this organization is doing.”
Henning said this mission will go on as long as it can. He said there are currently 64 requests for chairs around the country. Tina Bares asked that others support Saving A Hero’s Place, Inc. Donations can be made through www.savingaherosplace.org.
“I encourage people to support them so that they can continue to do this,” Tina Bares said. “Look at what they are doing for us. I know what this means for me and all of us. I want that for other families and other departments.”