Police hold memorial ride for fallen retired officer

By Kerry Brookes

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    ARUNDEL, Maine (WMTW) — Portland Police honored a fallen retired police officer with a memorial bike ride on Saturday.

Robert ‘Jeff’ Hawkins was an officer in Portland for 18 years before retiring in 2018.

In June, he was killed in a motorcycle crash in South Portland that also seriously injured his wife, Erin.

At least 50 motorcycle riders and their police escort left DiMillo’s in Portland Saturday morning.

A member of the Portland police rode one of the department’s brand-new motorcycles. The bike is dedicated to Hawkins, commemorated with a decal featuring his nickname, Hawk.

A few hours later they roared into the parking lot at Bentley’s Saloon, an Arundel bar that’s popular with bikers.

One of the event organizers, Janine Roberts, says Jeff is dearly missed.

“There were several times along the ride where I teared up thinking that he should be here with us,” she said. “He was a very close friend of mine, but he also made everybody feel like he was their best friend.”

All of the proceeds from the event registration and raffles, went to support Erin Hawkins as she continues to recover from the crash that killed her husband.

There is also a GoFundMe page raising money for Erin, which has reached more than $76,000 of the $100,000 goal.

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