FLINT, MI — A memorial service will be held this week for a Flint police captain who died in a head-on collision while returning home.
Captain Collin Birnie’s memorial service is scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 11 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 711 S. Saginaw Street, in downtown Flint.
Police and U.S. Army honors will follow on South Saginaw Street, across from the church.
Church seating is reserved for designated family, friends, and current and retired Flint police personnel.
The service will be broadcast live at the Capitol Theater, 140 E. Second St., for all other attendees, including non-Flint Police Department officials and civilians.
Attendees should plan to arrive early enough to have more time to park and arrive at the correct location as there will be numerous street closures in the downtown area, according to a Tuesday City of Flint press release. February 8.
Birnie died Friday, Feb. 4, after quitting his job with the Flint Police Department when his Chevy Tahoe was hit head-on by a Chevy Traverse on Elms Road, between Mt. Morris and Frances roads, in Mt. Morris, Police Chief Michael Veach said in previous MLive reports.
Related: Leaving his Flint police department to return home, the captain dies in a head-on collision on Friday
The collision happened as Birnie was heading north on Elms Road around 6 p.m. Friday, Veach told MLive-The Flint Journal.
Birnie was pronounced dead after being taken to a local hospital.
The 16-year-old Chevy Traverse driver, who was heading south on Elms Road when the accident happened, is still in hospital, Veach told MLive-Flint Journal.
Witnesses said the minor was passing vehicles when the Chevy Traverse lost control and slammed into Birnie’s vehicle in the opposite northbound lane.
The fatal crash is still under investigation by police, Veach said.
Mayor Sheldon Neeley ordered the Flint City Hall flag flown at half-mast to honor Birnie’s life and legacy.
The City of Flint flag at City Hall will remain at half mast until Monday, February 14, in honor of Birnie’s service to the greater Flint community.
At the Flint Police Department, Birnie served as the Patrol Bureau Commander, Bomb Squad Commander, Tactical Team Commander, Senior Firearms Instructor as well as numerous other duties at the department during of his 26-year career.
Prior to his law enforcement career, Birnie served in the United States Marines from 1988 to 1992 during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm.
“Collin was an avid hunter and enjoyed being in the woods whenever he could,” his obituary bed. “He also liked to fish and watch football.”
Collin Brevik Birnie is survived by his wife, Tina; children, Marista (Damon) Dryden and Bailey (Blas) Ramirez; granddaughters, Evelyn and Jacqueline; father, Reed Birnie; mother and stepfather, Stephanie and Jack Webb; sister, Nicole (Nick) Tefft; and nephews, Brevik and Barrett.
Learn more about MLive:
“He was our rock.” Flint Police and Michigan Public Safety Communities Mourn Captain Collin Birnie
Leaving his Flint police department to return home, the captain dies in a head-on collision on Friday
