PART OF THE THIN BLUE LINE


Every time I attend the Dallas Police Department's annual memorial service for officers killed in the line of duty, try as I may. I can't keep tears from falling down my cheeks at the first sound of bagpipes playing Amazing Grace, the final note of Taps after the service. Over 100 Dallas Police Officers stand at attention throughout most of the ceremony. Many of those officers are directly in front and facing family members of the fallen. I have to wonder if it crosses the police officers' minds o the possibility that their family might be part of the audience to honor them one day. Whether or not they can compartmentalize and carry on, they risk their lives each time they wear a uniform.

My great-great-uncle, Officer John Crain, was killed in 1923 while investigating suspicious activity at a closed store. As he peered through the window, one of the burglars shot him in the head with a .38 caliber pistol. They had killed another officer with the same gun a month earlier. A year later, they were executed for murder. My uncle was 56 and probably looking forward to retirement in the not-too-distant future. My grandmother was 23 when she lost her uncle.

There have been 86 officers killed in the line of duty in Dallas since 1892. Each name is called as family members stand. My mother, daughter, granddaughter, and I attended the service on May 8, and we were proud to stand for a relative we never knew but wanted to honor. He paid the ultimate sacrifice while protecting the people of Dallas on that day. We stood for him. While I don't attend the service yearly, I hope my daughter and grandchildren will carry on the family tradition of honoring our uncle.

The courage that police officers display every day is something I know I couldn't do. We go about our daily lives, and the thought of police officers might rarely cross our minds, but we call them the minute there's trouble or when we feel like our lives are in danger. What they experience daily is unimaginable to most of us. We are fortunate in Horseshoe Bay to have a well-trained police force. We can feel safe from harm, knowing we have outstanding police officers ready to help us should we need it. We are deeply appreciative of their service.

The Oath of Service

It takes less than a minute
To say how you will live
Serving well with honor
With every breath you give.

These words aren't spoken lightly
The oath defines your ways
And the respect you have to uphold the law
Throughout all of your days.

Holding close the values
Where you protect and serve
Always with integrity
And never will you swerve

It is these highest standards
That will help you grow and shine
As you take your place in uniform
Part of the thin blue line

--Robert Langley








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