Associated Press - August 26, 2009 10:45 PM ET

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - Hundreds of people, including law enforcement officers from all over the Northwest, gathered at St. Martin's University in Olympia to remember a Lewis County sheriff's deputy fatally injured in an Aug. 17 collision with an elk.

Deputy Stephen "Mike" Gallagher was on his way to back up another deputy on a domestic violence call when he hit the elk on Highway 12 near Packwood. The elk was killed.

Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield was among those who eulogized the 34-year-old deputy on Wednesday, calling him "a fine soldier, a strong warrior, a good man and a special gift to all of us."

Gallagher was a 6-year veteran of the department who previously served eight years in the Army. He leaves a wife and two young children.

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