Upper Peninsula Law Enforcement Memorial Service
May 15, 2007
Gwinn High School Gymnasium

Dr. Les Wong
President
Northern Michigan University

Sheriff Lovelace, Superintendent Peffers, Law enforcement officers, their families, law enforcement families who have lost loved ones in the line of duty, fellow citizens of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and future Northern students, thank you for this opportunity to honor the 16,600 officers and their families who have given their lives so that we may prosper and live in peace.

On October 1, 1962 President John F. Kennedy signed Public Law 87-726 which set aside May 15th of each year as a day to honor law enforcement and to specifically remember those Police Officers who have died in service to the nation.  All federal buildings will lower their flags to half mast today to honor the nearly 16,600 names on the National law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington D.C.   We all are truly grateful for their sacrifice and we are grateful for the continuing risk current officers assume daily to ensure our safety and well being. 

There are 740,000 law enforcement officers serving our nation responding to nearly 33 million crimes per year.  Scores are violent, some are minor and some are life ending.  That’s one crime every two seconds resulting in nearly 65,000 assaults on officers each year.  However, I also want us all to appreciate the even larger number of humanitarian, good Samaritan acts that go unrecorded.  Acts done while on duty and off.  Helping the weakest members of our community, assisting the lost, comforting those distressed by life’s events and assisting fire fighters, judges and lawyers sustain our society’s values.  Their work often goes unrecognized and often underappreciated. 

These officers deliver babies, protect school children, respond to 9-1-1 calls, officers are known to miss Christmas, and often miss the birthdays of their own children.  They enter dangerous situations without hesitation and your reflexes cause you to protect the public without regard for your own welfare.  I cannot even begin to convey the variety of actions all done in our behalf. 

Northern has been proud to be a part of the training and preparation of police officers in the Upper Peninsula and throughout Michigan.  I have met some extraordinary students who will become tomorrow’s officers.  Their commitment to duty matches their commitment to their studies.  But in a much more important way, they are preparing themselves to protect and serve their communities.  Our philosophy at Northern has been to prepare students to “make a difference”.  Beyond being competent at whatever you seek to do with your education, there is a larger realm of life that asks how an educated and well trained graduate contributes to their community.  Do you leave it better than you found it, have you helped others, especially those in need or despair?  Quite simply, “have you a difference in the world around you”.  Doing so, takes character and a sense of values.   From what I’ve seen of officers in preparation, from those I met who are active officers, our communities are well served by your sense of duty.

I want to close by honoring today’s officers for making a difference.  By expressing my gratitude to the families who have lost loved ones who gave their life in the line of duty.  This is a special day to simply say thank you.