Jeff Goodrich, a Manhattan Beach police officer, died Thursday evening at home after fighting brain cancer for more than a year, police said. He was 41.
Goodrich worked closely with families from Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach as the organizer of the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation's Parent Soccer Tournament, which raised money for area schools.
Goodrich also had been the focus of many other community fundraisers, including a "dunk-a-cop" event and a silent auction organized by his Manhattan Beach place of worship, The Rock Covenant Church. Proceeds helped cover the costs of cancer treatment.
At last year's Hometown Fair, Goodrich sat in the dunk tank to raise money for fellow Officer Mark Vasquez, who is also fighting cancer.
Obituary
When coworkers talk about Manhattan Beach Police Officer Jeff Goodrich, the first thing they mention is his love for his family.
It was at home with his wife and two daughters that Goodrich lost his 20-month battle with brain cancer Sept. 30. He was 41.
Goodrich, who was married to his high school sweetheart, Julie, was well loved by fellow police officers and the community and served as a role model for younger officers. Goodrich spent his free time volunteering for his church and volunteering his construction services for Extreme Home Makeover. He was the first to sign up for any community event the police department was involved in.
"Jeff was loved by everyone at the police department and worked in spite of his battles with cancer, because serving the community was in his blood, giving up was not," said Police Chief Rod Uyeda. "If it is possible to be too nice of a guy, Jeff was that nice."
After a financially rewarding career in home construction, Goodrich left the field to become a police officer, his true passion.
"Beyond crime fighting, he was much more," Uyeda said. "He was a spiritual man and gave more than he ever received. You could tell by the love in his family's eyes that he was the kind of husband and father that fairy tales are made of."
Goodrich worked two jobs to help put Julie through nursing school, a recent accomplishment he bragged about on the blog he and Julie updated frequently on The Rock Covenant Church's Web site.
"She did it!!!!" Jeff wrote on May 26 about Julie's nursing school graduation. "She knocked it out of the park and gave a great speech."
In January 2009, after suffering sudden, excruciating headaches, Jeff had three impacted teeth extracted on the advice of his doctors. A CT scan later determined that Goodrich had a stage 4 cancerous brain tumor, which was later removed. Goodrich endured months of radiation, chemotherapy and experimental medicine, all with the continued support of coworkers, friends and family. Many community fundraisers were held to support him. In a 2009 interview, Goodrich remained upbeat about his condition and said there was nothing like his two beautiful daughters to make him want to stick around. In numerous blog posts Jeff would focus on his wife and daughters' accomplishments, not on his treatments.
"We continue to see God's blessings in our life every day. The continued support of our family and friends is one of the many we see daily," he wrote.
In a blog post on Sept. 30, with Jeff at home receiving hospice care, Julie wrote, "The life on earth is truly a blip compared to the eternity I will have with Jeff in heaven. It is just going to be a painful blip to not have my best friend with me."
In a blog post two days after Jeff passed away, Julie wrote, "Although the sadness overwhelms me at times, I miss him terribly already, the girls and I still have joy and laughter in our home."
Goodrich worked closely with families from Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach as the organizer of the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation's Parent Soccer Tournament, which raised money for area schools.
Goodrich also had been the focus of many other community fundraisers, including a "dunk-a-cop" event and a silent auction organized by his Manhattan Beach place of worship, The Rock Covenant Church. Proceeds helped cover the costs of cancer treatment.
At last year's Hometown Fair, Goodrich sat in the dunk tank to raise money for fellow Officer Mark Vasquez, who is also fighting cancer.
Obituary
When coworkers talk about Manhattan Beach Police Officer Jeff Goodrich, the first thing they mention is his love for his family.
It was at home with his wife and two daughters that Goodrich lost his 20-month battle with brain cancer Sept. 30. He was 41.
Goodrich, who was married to his high school sweetheart, Julie, was well loved by fellow police officers and the community and served as a role model for younger officers. Goodrich spent his free time volunteering for his church and volunteering his construction services for Extreme Home Makeover. He was the first to sign up for any community event the police department was involved in.
"Jeff was loved by everyone at the police department and worked in spite of his battles with cancer, because serving the community was in his blood, giving up was not," said Police Chief Rod Uyeda. "If it is possible to be too nice of a guy, Jeff was that nice."
After a financially rewarding career in home construction, Goodrich left the field to become a police officer, his true passion.
"Beyond crime fighting, he was much more," Uyeda said. "He was a spiritual man and gave more than he ever received. You could tell by the love in his family's eyes that he was the kind of husband and father that fairy tales are made of."
Goodrich worked two jobs to help put Julie through nursing school, a recent accomplishment he bragged about on the blog he and Julie updated frequently on The Rock Covenant Church's Web site.
"She did it!!!!" Jeff wrote on May 26 about Julie's nursing school graduation. "She knocked it out of the park and gave a great speech."
In January 2009, after suffering sudden, excruciating headaches, Jeff had three impacted teeth extracted on the advice of his doctors. A CT scan later determined that Goodrich had a stage 4 cancerous brain tumor, which was later removed. Goodrich endured months of radiation, chemotherapy and experimental medicine, all with the continued support of coworkers, friends and family. Many community fundraisers were held to support him. In a 2009 interview, Goodrich remained upbeat about his condition and said there was nothing like his two beautiful daughters to make him want to stick around. In numerous blog posts Jeff would focus on his wife and daughters' accomplishments, not on his treatments.
"We continue to see God's blessings in our life every day. The continued support of our family and friends is one of the many we see daily," he wrote.
In a blog post on Sept. 30, with Jeff at home receiving hospice care, Julie wrote, "The life on earth is truly a blip compared to the eternity I will have with Jeff in heaven. It is just going to be a painful blip to not have my best friend with me."
In a blog post two days after Jeff passed away, Julie wrote, "Although the sadness overwhelms me at times, I miss him terribly already, the girls and I still have joy and laughter in our home."
Jeff Goodrich, a Manhattan Beach police officer, died Thursday evening at home after fighting brain cancer for more than a year, police said. He was 41.
Goodrich worked closely with families from Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach as the organizer of the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation's Parent Soccer Tournament, which raised money for area schools.
Goodrich also had been the focus of many other community fundraisers, including a "dunk-a-cop" event and a silent auction organized by his Manhattan Beach place of worship, The Rock Covenant Church. Proceeds helped cover the costs of cancer treatment.
At last year's Hometown Fair, Goodrich sat in the dunk tank to raise money for fellow Officer Mark Vasquez, who is also fighting cancer.
Obituary
When coworkers talk about Manhattan Beach Police Officer Jeff Goodrich, the first thing they mention is his love for his family.
It was at home with his wife and two daughters that Goodrich lost his 20-month battle with brain cancer Sept. 30. He was 41.
Goodrich, who was married to his high school sweetheart, Julie, was well loved by fellow police officers and the community and served as a role model for younger officers. Goodrich spent his free time volunteering for his church and volunteering his construction services for Extreme Home Makeover. He was the first to sign up for any community event the police department was involved in.
"Jeff was loved by everyone at the police department and worked in spite of his battles with cancer, because serving the community was in his blood, giving up was not," said Police Chief Rod Uyeda. "If it is possible to be too nice of a guy, Jeff was that nice."
After a financially rewarding career in home construction, Goodrich left the field to become a police officer, his true passion.
"Beyond crime fighting, he was much more," Uyeda said. "He was a spiritual man and gave more than he ever received. You could tell by the love in his family's eyes that he was the kind of husband and father that fairy tales are made of."
Goodrich worked two jobs to help put Julie through nursing school, a recent accomplishment he bragged about on the blog he and Julie updated frequently on The Rock Covenant Church's Web site.
"She did it!!!!" Jeff wrote on May 26 about Julie's nursing school graduation. "She knocked it out of the park and gave a great speech."
In January 2009, after suffering sudden, excruciating headaches, Jeff had three impacted teeth extracted on the advice of his doctors. A CT scan later determined that Goodrich had a stage 4 cancerous brain tumor, which was later removed. Goodrich endured months of radiation, chemotherapy and experimental medicine, all with the continued support of coworkers, friends and family. Many community fundraisers were held to support him. In a 2009 interview, Goodrich remained upbeat about his condition and said there was nothing like his two beautiful daughters to make him want to stick around. In numerous blog posts Jeff would focus on his wife and daughters' accomplishments, not on his treatments.
"We continue to see God's blessings in our life every day. The continued support of our family and friends is one of the many we see daily," he wrote.
In a blog post on Sept. 30, with Jeff at home receiving hospice care, Julie wrote, "The life on earth is truly a blip compared to the eternity I will have with Jeff in heaven. It is just going to be a painful blip to not have my best friend with me."
In a blog post two days after Jeff passed away, Julie wrote, "Although the sadness overwhelms me at times, I miss him terribly already, the girls and I still have joy and laughter in our home."
Goodrich worked closely with families from Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach as the organizer of the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation's Parent Soccer Tournament, which raised money for area schools.
Goodrich also had been the focus of many other community fundraisers, including a "dunk-a-cop" event and a silent auction organized by his Manhattan Beach place of worship, The Rock Covenant Church. Proceeds helped cover the costs of cancer treatment.
At last year's Hometown Fair, Goodrich sat in the dunk tank to raise money for fellow Officer Mark Vasquez, who is also fighting cancer.
Obituary
When coworkers talk about Manhattan Beach Police Officer Jeff Goodrich, the first thing they mention is his love for his family.
It was at home with his wife and two daughters that Goodrich lost his 20-month battle with brain cancer Sept. 30. He was 41.
Goodrich, who was married to his high school sweetheart, Julie, was well loved by fellow police officers and the community and served as a role model for younger officers. Goodrich spent his free time volunteering for his church and volunteering his construction services for Extreme Home Makeover. He was the first to sign up for any community event the police department was involved in.
"Jeff was loved by everyone at the police department and worked in spite of his battles with cancer, because serving the community was in his blood, giving up was not," said Police Chief Rod Uyeda. "If it is possible to be too nice of a guy, Jeff was that nice."
After a financially rewarding career in home construction, Goodrich left the field to become a police officer, his true passion.
"Beyond crime fighting, he was much more," Uyeda said. "He was a spiritual man and gave more than he ever received. You could tell by the love in his family's eyes that he was the kind of husband and father that fairy tales are made of."
Goodrich worked two jobs to help put Julie through nursing school, a recent accomplishment he bragged about on the blog he and Julie updated frequently on The Rock Covenant Church's Web site.
"She did it!!!!" Jeff wrote on May 26 about Julie's nursing school graduation. "She knocked it out of the park and gave a great speech."
In January 2009, after suffering sudden, excruciating headaches, Jeff had three impacted teeth extracted on the advice of his doctors. A CT scan later determined that Goodrich had a stage 4 cancerous brain tumor, which was later removed. Goodrich endured months of radiation, chemotherapy and experimental medicine, all with the continued support of coworkers, friends and family. Many community fundraisers were held to support him. In a 2009 interview, Goodrich remained upbeat about his condition and said there was nothing like his two beautiful daughters to make him want to stick around. In numerous blog posts Jeff would focus on his wife and daughters' accomplishments, not on his treatments.
"We continue to see God's blessings in our life every day. The continued support of our family and friends is one of the many we see daily," he wrote.
In a blog post on Sept. 30, with Jeff at home receiving hospice care, Julie wrote, "The life on earth is truly a blip compared to the eternity I will have with Jeff in heaven. It is just going to be a painful blip to not have my best friend with me."
In a blog post two days after Jeff passed away, Julie wrote, "Although the sadness overwhelms me at times, I miss him terribly already, the girls and I still have joy and laughter in our home."
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