BAY CITY -- It was a somber mood at the Presbyterian Church in Bay City as hundreds turned out to pay their respects to slain police officers during the Project Blue Light Memorial service Wednesday night.
"I started in 1990 and shortly there after in 1991 I was on the department a little after a year when two officers were murdered in the line of duty at the corner of 19th and Broadway streets," said Deputy Police Chief Thomas Pletzke
Chief Pletzke is just one of many who've endured the pain of losing fellow officers. And then there are the families whose emotional wounds run much deeper.
"My father deputy Phil Crammer, he was killed by a drunk driver he and his partner were in a care accident," said the daughter of a slain officer Diane Woods. Michigan ranks 9th among states with the most fallen officers and because this alarming fact, Chief Pletzke said he would like Project Blue Light to become a community effort.
"Were asking that everybody put a blue light outside so it can be seen to show that they honor the officers that have gave their life in the line of duty," said Pletze.
Because of these officers and many others who've lost their lives in the line of duty, thousands of blue lights shine in support of law enforcement. "It's not just my father but all the other officers that have been killed in the line of duty, and for the ones those are still among us and keep us safe," Woods said.
Supporters of the program also display blue ribbons as an additional reminder to honor law enforcement officers. This is the 8th year that the local community has held a Project Blue Light program.
