Three officers from local agencies were celebrated as Polk County’s finest for 2024.
The Exchange Club of Cedartown back in May gathered for their Thursday evening dinner meeting to celebrate the Officer of the Year from the Cedartown Police Department, the Rockmart Police Department and the Polk County Police Department.
This year, the club named Capt. Brad Coppock from Cedartown Police, Rockmart Police Officer Anna Holland, and PCPD Officer Tyler Huff for their annual honoring of local law enforcement.
Each of them were nominated by their agency.
Here’s a little about the trio of officers:
Polk County Police Department
A veteran, a longtime law enforcement officer and a relative newcomer to the Polk County Police, Officer Tyler Huff was named the 2024 Officer of the Year for the PCPD.
Huff served with the United States Marine Corps and is a veteran officer after service with Rockmart Police, but joined the PCPD back in August 2024.
“Officer Huff is a tremendous asset to our department and we are fortunate to have him serving the citizens of Polk County,” the PCPD posted on their Facebook page. “We would also like to congratulate all the other officers that received recognition from their respective agencies as Officer of the Year!”
New Chief Kiki Evans (then interim) was on hand for the meeting to honor Officer Huff.
Rockmart Police Department
The Rockmart Police Department this year nominated Officer Anna Holland for her excellent work.
Holland was joined by command staff and family for the banquet in May.
“We’re grateful to have Anna on our team and we look forward to seeing what she does in the future here,” the Rockmart Police noted on their Facebook post honoring her award.
Holland is a relative newcomer to the Rockmart Police, having finished the Basic Mandate course in 2023 before joining the RPD.
She was previously involved in the telecommunications field and switched to a new career after 24 years of success in her field. Holland was also noted by RPD in her nomination to the Exchange Club to have also overcome personal injury to become an officer.
“She has already impressed us and her fellow officers with her ability to learn in an informative but humble way,” command staff noted in their nomination.
Cedartown Police Department
Usually, a department doesn’t choose a member of command staff to be the Officer of the Year, but 2024 is an exception that proves the rule for the Cedartown Police Department.
Captain Bradley Coppock was this year’s recipient because as Cedartown Police Chief Jamie Newsome noted in a recent report to the City Commission:
“Captain Coppock is an invaluable member of the CPD Team and he is the type of Division Commander that every Chief of Police wishes he had. I am blessed and appreciate him every day,” Newsome said.
Newsome also noted that despite all his years as an officer in a patrol vehicle and working in the city, he never got the chance to be honored or nominated as an Officer of the Year.
Coppock is an 18 year veteran of the Cedartown Police, working his way up to the rank of Captain after beginning in the patrol division in 2006. He started his career in 1996 with the West Georgia Boot Camp in the Department of Corrections in 1996, and stayed with them until 2002 after rising to the rank of Sergeant.
He was promoted to the rank of Captain in 2020 upon the retirement of Henry Runyan.
Photos courtesy of Cedartown PD, Rockmart PD and Polk County PD.
