Fred M. Mills MASTERS Public Service Award 2022
Corporal Billy V. Cole, Troop A
Corporal Billy V. Cole serves as a marine operations trooper and is a current member of the Dive Team. Throughout his career he has shown a commitment to public service. He was part of the Dive Team assisting with the duck boat incident in 2018. In 2021, Corporal Cole searched for four hours in the dark to locate a female who had jumped from a bridge, then transported her to safety.
In 2014, Corporal Cole’s daughter, Malina, was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma, an extremely rare form of bone cancer. Over the next year, she had chemotherapy and 32 rounds of radiation at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri.
After their daughter’s chemotherapy treatment, the family wanted to help other families in the pediatric cancer world. They provided dinners, and delivered toys gifts, and toiletries. The Cole family became involved with Noah’s Bandage Project and have organized a bandage drive and fundraiser in their daughter’s school for the past five years. They have also volunteered with the Supporting Kids Foundation, KC Cares for Kids, Camp Quality, and Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. Every year on March 27, marking the last day of her treatment, the Cole family holds Malina’s Day of Kindness. They organize an act of kindness to benefit Children’s Mercy Hospital and pass out cards encouraging others to perform random acts of kindness, helping the Coles honor the kind acts experienced during their daughter’s treatment.
The Fred M. Mills MASTERS Public Service Award honors Corporal Billy V. Cole’s professional and personal service to the people of Missouri. |
