2017 Honor Guard Wreath Watch
Credit: National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
NATIONAL
P O L I C E WEEK
SUPPORTING POLICE AND SURVIVORS AT REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT DURING POLICE WEEK
Should any proof be needed of how
dangerous a career in law enforcement can
be, look no further than the statistics of
officers killed in the line of duty. Each year
in the United States, between 100 and 200
pay the ultimate sacrifice, and sometimes
more. Although the 129 lost in 2017 marks the
second-lowest toll in more than 50 years, it’s
still 129 too many.
Established in 1962 by President Kennedy,
National Police Week pays tribute to the men
and women behind the numbers. Between
25,000 and 40,000 officers, officials, and the
families and co-workers of the slain gather in
Washington D.C. for a week of ceremonies,
conferences, and events, including the annual
Blue Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, a 5K
race, candlelight vigil, and conference for
families and co-workers coping with grief. It
all culminates at the two-hour National Peace
Officers Memorial Service on May 15 on the
West Front of the United States Capitol.
Many of the survivors of slain officers come
through Reagan National Airport, where they
are met at the gate by police officers from all
over the Washington, D.C. region, as well as
the country, who then escort them to charter
buses that take them to their respective
FLYWASHINGTON.COM 16 SUMMER 2018
hotels. Not only is it a job imbued with the
somberness and emotion of the occasion,
but also hard work that sometimes requires
hours of waiting for flights in the discomfort
of full dress uniforms. According
to Sergeant Michael Thompson of
the MWAA Police Department, the
Authority Police Honor Guard serves
as the official escort for families of
fallen officers.
Manager of Concessions and Services,
Carol Gabriel, along with many airport
vendors, work behind the scenes,
arranging meals in an effort to provide
comfort while the officers wait for
their assigned flights. The hospitality
started in the mid-1990s, when her
then soon-to-be husband (also an
airport police officer) asked if she could rustle
up a few meals for officers waiting to meet
survivors. “A few tenants donated food to
five or six officers back then,” she remembers.
Now the numbers have sky rocketed and each
vendor is asked to donate food for 100 people.
“It’s about making sure that all the officers at
the airport are comfortable during a difficult
time.”
National Police Week (NPW) is held May 11-17
each year in Washington, D.C. The National
Police Week 5k, hosted by the Officer Down
Memorial Page, begins at 9:00AM at 4th
& F St., NW. Registration and information
Blue Mass 2017
Credit: National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
is available at www.nationalpoliceweek5k.
com. The first major event this year is the
Candlelight Virgil, hosted by the National
Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
(NLEOMF), which starts at 8:00PM on
May 13, 2018. A full schedule of events and
information can be found at
www.policeweek.org.
-Mike Dunphy