ABAC mourns passing of ABAC, Cook officer

TIFTON — Frank Strickland, the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College police chief, remembers meeting Tim Bruner on his first day on the job in 2015.

“Tim took me around campus, showed me everything, introduced me to people,” Strickland said. “When someone does that on your first day on the job, you don’t ever forget it. He was a good man.”

Bruner, 49, passed away Saturday, May 20. Funeral services were May 27, in the chapel of Albritton Funeral Directors, college representatives said in a statement.

Fellow law enforcement officers from ABAC and the Cook County Sheriff’s Office will serve as pallbearers.

After graduating from the ABAC Police Academy, Bruner earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and worked in law enforcement for more than 25 years.

He was a full-time officer at the college before going into private business. Last year, he rejoined the ABAC police department while also working part-time with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office as a reserve deputy before being seriously injured while on duty in November.

While performing a traffic stop on Interstate 75 in Cook County, he was struck by an RV. The Cook County Sheriff’s Office said the RV had been sideswiped by another vehicle and forced off the road, hitting Bruner, his patrol car and the car he had stopped.

After the accident, Bruner was airlifted to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital where he underwent surgery for numerous injuries.

“This is a terribly tragic loss for our ABAC family,” ABAC President Tracy Brundage said. “Tim was a dedicated public servant who will be missed. Our thoughts and prayers remain with his family.”

“Tim loved serving people,” Strickland said. “He was just a really good person. He loved his family, fishing and hunting, that kind of thing. He was a good man and we’ll miss him.”