A local family decided to help beautify Old Town Orcutt by dedicating a living memorial to a deceased loved one — a veteran Lompoc police officer.

There are more than a dozen Strawberry Trees planted along Clark Avenue, and one recently was dedicated to the memory of Lompoc police agent Christopher Paul Kies, who died almost two years ago.

On Wednesday — Veterans Day — dozens of people gathered around the evergreen placed in front of the Orcutt Hill Pizza Company to remember their loved ones.

“Hero on earth, angel in heaven,” reads the plaque placed beneath the foliage, along with Kies’ birth on May 3, 1968, and death on Jan. 12, 2007.

The trees have green, glossy leaves and colorful balls of fruit — which are not strawberries — and were planted about town by the Old Town Orcutt Revitalization Association (OTORA) early this year.

Most all have been dedicated with a $2,200 donation or reserved, said Berto Van Veen, an OTORA board member.

However, four more are scheduled to be planted at Clark Avenue and Gray Street, following county construction to the intersection, Van Veen said.

“It’s shaping up wonderful, to have the support of so many people that donate amounts of money to plant the trees,” he said.

“Instead of depending on the county, which has no funds, the public gets involved and beautifies the town.”

The Lompoc and Santa Maria police departments and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department donated money and assisted Kies’ sister, Melissa Wisz, in raising money for the memorial tree.

“Remember the freedom we enjoy is because of men like Chris, and the comforts we enjoy are because of men like Chris,” said Lompoc Police Chief Tim Dabney, in a prayer Tuesday.

“There isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t think of him,” Sgt. Bryan Dillard said before the crowd of family and friends.

Kies died at age 38 due to an accidental overdose of prescription drugs that he had been taking for a back injury suffered in an on-duty motorcycle accident in 1998.

He was a decorated, veteran police agent, a Marine and a beloved father of five.

“Our dad was a great man,” said Kies’ daughter, Ashley Soto, while holding her 2-year-old son Christopher, named for his grandfather.

“I just wanted Chris to be remembered again, because he was an awesome human being, and an incredible officer,” Wisz said.

Coincidentally, the Kies memorial tree sits out front of a pizzeria owned by the Danny Kies, Christopher’s brother.

“We were born and raised here, so it’s nice doing something where we live,” Wisz said.

In addition to the trees, OTORA also offers memorial plaques on the town clock on East Clark Avenue, across the street from Kay’s Country Kitchen.

There are seven available slots for a $250 donation, and a larger section is still open for a $2,500 donation, Van Veen said. A dedication to all the donors is tentatively scheduled for February, a year after the 17-foot-tall clock graced the downtown area.

Next on the list for revitalizing the community could be a state-of-the-art flagpole, which may be dedicated to veterans, at the corner of Orcutt Road and East Clark Avenue, west of Highway 135, Van Veen said.

Anyone interested in dedicating a tree or adding a name to the Orcutt clock base is asked to call Van Veen at 720-4400.

November 16, 2009