Law Enforcement Officers from Around Iowa Pay Somber Tribute to Fallen Comrades

Peace officers from around Iowa came together in somber reflection in Urbandale Tuesday to pay tribute to 138 of their comrades who lost their lives in the line of duty last year.

The observance was one of dozens held across the country during Police Memorial Week, a week set aside by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 in recognition of peace officers’ contribution to civilization by enforcing laws that gives citizens “internal freedom from fear of the violence and civil disorder that is presentingly affecting other nations.”

Wearing duty uniforms and dress blues, gloves and waistcoats, shoulder cords and visor caps, they filled the Aldersgate United Methodist Church, their stony silence conveying a stronger message than spoken words.

A baby cried, piercing the silence – a reminder, federal prosecutor Nicholas Kleinfeldt said in his remarks, “of why we are here.”

“Law enforcement officers are not just important, they are a must-have – a must have. They are as necessary as the air we breathe and the water we drink. ..." – Linda Carter-Lewis, Des Moines Police Department Community Ambassador Program 

The Peace Officer’s Memorial service “is about honoring officers, but it’s also about families,” said Kleinfeldt, who works closely with police officers in his capacity as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa based in Des Moines.

“It’s very important that we not forget the families of law enforcement,” he said. “They wonder whether their husband or wife, or mother or father, is going to come home.”

Moments later, peace officers – some of them state troopers, others municipal policemen and policewomen, still others sheriff’s deputies and traffic enforcement officers – placed miniature state flags at the tribute table, each representing an officer who died in the line of duty. The officers, 18 of them K-9 officers, represented 40 states, two U.S. territories and federal agencies.

From Urbandale Mayor Bob Andeweg to Police Chief Ross McCarty, speakers reminded those in attendance that police officers put their lives on the line daily to keep the communities they serve safe.

“Law enforcement officers are not just important, they are a must-have – a must have,” emphasized Linda Carter-Lewis, who works with the Des Moines Police Department’s Community Ambassador Program. “They are as necessary as the air we breathe and the water we drink. …

“We commit to you that we will do all we can to make your jobs easier by being your eyes and ears more often and in more places when you cannot be there,” she continued. “And to those families, thank you for supporting them in … an all too often dangerous profession.”

It is impossible to know how many lives have been touched or saved as a result of the heroics of fallen officers, but their legacy must live on, Carter-Lewis said.

The ceremony concluded with a ceremonial folding of the American flag by the Iowa State Patrol Honor Guard, the playing of “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes, a 21-gun salute by the Polk County Honor Guard and the playing of “Taps” by Phil Kinney of the Polk County Sheriff’s Department.

Honor guards from the Urbandale and West Des Moines police departments also participated in the service.