Sgt. Marc Wilbur, 43, of Avon Park Police Department died approximately 8:30 a.m. Christmas morning at the Winn Dixie shopping plaza parking lot in his patrol car with a trainee when he “fell unconscious,” after he began his shift at 6:00 a.m. He was accompanied by a police officer trainee who notified emergency dispatch that he collapsed. EMS responded and attempted to revive him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation but were unsuccessful. He was transported by Highlands County Emergency Medical Services to Florida Hospital Heartland Division, where he was pronounced dead at 9:00 a.m. of an apparent heart attack. Sgt. Wilbur is the first Avon Park Police officer to die while on duty. Sgt. Wilbur was a state certified K-9 instructor holding certification courses for the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, Polk County and the city of North Port K-9 teams. In 2006 Wilbur and his 7-year-old partner “Ivan” were the cream of the crop after beating out fifty other K9 teams from across the country in the annual Bomb and Narcotics Detection Seminar held in Daytona in 2006 where canine teams from as far away as Bahamas competed. In 2004 Sgt. Wilbur and Ivan took second place in the National Drug Detection Seminar put on by the Southern Hills Kennels, Inc, in Daytona. Prior to handling Ivan, Sgt. Wilbur handled K9 partner “Sando”, who had numerous arrests to his credit. Sgt Wilbur served as a law enforcement officer for Avon Park Police Department for twelve years. Before that he served with Falmouth Police Department in Massachusetts and as a deputy sheriff with the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office and police officer for Frostproof Police Department in Florida. His career spanned a total of nearly 20 years. A horse-and-buggy procession, black rider less horse, approximately 12 K-9 teams and honor guards made up the service ith approximately five hundred people who attended the servive watch two helicopters doing a fly over at the end. Wilbur is survived by his seven year old son Adam Scott Wilbur. Donations can be made to his son at any Bank of America location under the account name, Adam Scott Wilbur Trust, and the account number is 229008724703.
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