Michael Frank remembered

For more than a decade, any reporter who covered the crime beat in Aiken County knew Michael Frank's pager number by heart.

With his tragic passing over the weekend, Aiken County has lost the primary liaison between the sheriff's office and the media, the man who gave the information to the press, who in turn gave it to you.

Frank, who lost his life in a one-car crash on I-20 Saturday, was a fair and honest public information officer, treating the media with the respect he garnered during his years as a television reporter.

Frank's job was often to deliver sad or unpleasant news - news about murders or robberies or kidnappings. But he did so with a professionalism that was unrivaled. And even when the bad news came from within the department that he served for 13 years, Frank was forthcoming, never hiding the bad news, never shying away from the tough questions.

Many readers knew Michael Frank by his mug shot that ran with countless stories a year from the sheriff's office. Like all of us, Frank was more than his career, and his untimely passing leaves a mournful void for his family and friends.

The Aiken County Sheriff's Office lost one of its own this weekend, the Frank family has lost a loved one and Aiken County has lost a voice that served it well for many years.

Godspeed, Michael Frank, and may your family, friends and co-workers be kept in the thoughts and prayers of the community that you served so well.