A week to honor the fallen

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jessica Haas
  • 8th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
KUNSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  Their mission is to defend those that cannot defend themselves. They work around the clock to ensure others are safe and sometimes, must make the ultimate sacrifice to ensure the safety of others. Law enforcement officers fall so that others may live.

To recognize the many fallen heroes in law enforcement, President John F. Kennedy proclaimed May 15, 1962 as National Peace Officers Memorial Day, and the calendar week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. Defenders from the 8th Security Forces Squadron honored this national week by holding a variety of events throughout the week of May 12 to 18, 2013.

"National Police Week is a time when we [Airmen] can get together and remember the many men and women who gave their lives in the line of duty," said Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Self, 8th SFS resource protection NCO in charge and police week committee chairman. "The goal of the week is to engage in a variety of events to honor our fellow law enforcement men and women, as well as to educate others ."

National Police Week events included a memorial breakfast, military working dog demonstration, weapons display, a ruck march, defender challenge and a memorial retreat.

"We had a lot of participation at each event," Self said . "There were also many spectators from different career fields. This week wasn't just a time to remember the fallen, but also a time to familiarize others outside of this profession."

Self admitted that he never really thought about what law enforcement officials did before he became one.

"Now that I am a part of this career field and have a much better understanding of what it entails, I appreciate law enforcement a lot more," Self said. Not only does it educate and honor, but National Police Week also serves as a time for defenders to come together and build camaraderie and esprit de corps.

"I definitely think it helped instill more pride in our security forces members," Self said. "Especially during the defender challenge at the end - members really had to work together to win the event."

Airman 1st Class Matthew Pittala, 8th SFS rations clerk, said the defenders challenge was a great way for security forces members to compete and test their strength.

"It was a lot of fun to compete," said Pittala. "There were definitely some difficult parts of the challenge, most notably the gas mask run at the very end. It was getting hard, but any time I felt like stopping I'd think about the reason we were doing it. Honoring the fallen is what got me through to the finish line."