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National Police Week

 

I've said it many times, but it still holds true. It's an honor to be part of a profession which allows me to work each and every day with men and women who eagerly and courageously serve our community.

Whether their shift starts as the sun rises or when it goes down, they put on their bullet resistant vest, pin a badge to their chest, and tell their family goodbye, not knowing what awaits them.

As they are patrolling our neighborhoods, trying to keep an eye on the suspected drug house, a call from dispatch suddenly comes across the radio.  They rush to the wooded area where an injured woman is hiding until they arrive, having finally escaped a house where she had been beaten for several days and her assailant forced a gun into her mouth.

After clearing the scene, they get called to mediate between two neighbors arguing once again about a property boundary line. 

Not long after, they encounter someone experiencing a mental health crisis and try to figure out the best solution, knowing it would be days, if not weeks, before a bed becomes available at the state mental health hospital.

In the same shift, they say a silent prayer as they rush to a home where young parents discovered their newborn child is lifeless.

As their workday is about to end, they get a domestic disturbance call where the suspect has beaten his girlfriend, has a gun and threatens to "shoot any cop who comes down the driveway."

The scenarios I've mentioned are not exaggerated examples; this is what happens.  It happens right here and it happens more frequently than most would like to know about. 

The emotional strain that comes with this type of work can be truly exhausting and somewhat hard to explain.

The professionals who perform these tasks don't do it because they want praise or thanks.  They do so, quite frankly, because someone has to.  Someone has to step up. Someone has to have the courage to rush into those dangerous and chaotic scenes.  Someone has to be willing to shoulder the weight of not being able to get to the scene in time to successfully breathe life back into a child.  Someone has to be willing to compassionately listen as a young girl explains how she was molested by what should have been a trusted family member and someone has to manage the chaos of a multiple car fatality crash.

Despite the danger, despite the ever increasing intensity of calls, despite the narrative across the country demonizing them and their chosen profession, these men and women allow their sense of duty and their commitment to our community, to outweigh all of that.  And thank God they do!

These are just some of the reasons why I remain unapologetically appreciative and proud of the men and women who serve as law enforcement professionals.   

This week we recognize National Police Week; a time we as a nation honor the memories of those who were killed in service to their communities and express appreciation for those who work to keep our families and loved ones safe.

Although they don't seek expressions of thanks, I'd ask you to join me in thanking them anyway.

God Bless,

Sheriff David Groves

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear," Ambrose Redmoon

 

 

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