Manatee High School to host Military Appreciation Night in honor of late Bradenton Police Sergeant

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - Manatee High School will host a Military Appreciation Night this Friday in honor of the school’s connection to a late Bradenton Police Sergeant.

The event will honor Veteran and BPD Sergeant Lee Cosens, who passed away earlier this year from cancer. Sgt. Cosens, a U.S. Army veteran, worked for more than 10 years as a patrol officer and detective. He served in the Army from 2007 – 2012 including a tour in Kandahar, Afghanistan from 2009 – 2010.

Sgt. Cosens’ wife is a teacher in the Manatee County School District.

Manatee High School and the Manatee Football program will be honoring members of the military who are currently serving or who have served. The school says they will honor these individuals before the coin toss where they will be recognized.

“The coin toss will also be a special event as we are honoring the family of Sgt. Lee Cosens, a BPD officer who lost his battle to kidney cancer this past spring. Lee’s wife Amy is a teacher in our district and we will be honoring Lee for his service to our country in the US Army as well as his service to the City of Bradenton,” school officials told ABC7.

MHS will collect donations at the game to help with future educational expenses for Lee’s daughters.