Judging by the procession of vehicles that followed behind the hearse that carried officer Randall Simmons’ body, a person would have been inclined to believe that he had been part of royalty.

Simmons was a 27-year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department and a member of the highly decorated SWAT division.

Simmons was killed two weeks ago in a shootout in which he took a bullet for his partner, who was also shot and severely wounded.

During a time where young people who live in crime-infested neighborhoods seem to have developed a mistrust for police officers due to scandal that has rocked the LAPD in the past, Simmons commanded respect, not because of his physically imposing frame, but because of his heart.

Instead of intimidating young people into living right, Simmons used a gentler method of policing the mean streets of South Central Los Angeles and other areas that he patrolled.

Instead of assuming that a person was guilty because of the type of clothes he or she wore, Simmons befriended those people and encouraged them and showed them that there was a better way to live their lives.

In a touching tribute to his memory, many of the young people whom Simmons mentored spoke about a man who ministered to them and provided them with a glimmer of hope for the future.

For most of them, it was as though they had lost their own father.

The tears that they cried were evident that Simmons was a hero never to be forgotten.

In a day and age where we look to celebrities and athletes to be role models for our children and young people, we tend to forget the other people who do the small things to help us out in life.

Simmons was a man of conviction.

He lived by his Christian faith every day and it showed in his work in the force and in his day-to-day living.

Although Simmons was not a king, he left a legacy that was fit for one.