National
Police Week 2009
National
Police Week 2009
A Time of Honoring,
Remembering, and Healing
Return Home
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed a Presidential Proclamation that
set aside May 15 as National Peace Officers’ Memorial Day and the week of May 15
as National Police Week. In 2009, National Police Week will run from Monday,
May 11 through Sunday, May 17; however, events held in the Nation’s capital will
run from May 13 through May 16. A listing of the day-by-day activities are
included at the end of this article.
Invitation packets will be mailed to survivors of 2008 the last week of January and will be sent with first-class postage. All survivors, however, should receive their National Police Week 2009 packet by the first week of February.
Information packets will be sent to the agencies that suffered the loss of an officer around that same time frame. Information in the agency packets will direct officers on making hotel accommodations and finding transportation to and from the airport and the major events for National Police Week.
When registering on-line, survivors should use the code that appears on the mailing label of their invitation packet to enter this secured site for on-line registration.
In order to fully understand the following information, there will be definitions for terms used throughout the text of this article.
Current-Year Survivors: Any family member from a 2008 line-of-duty death and a few families whose officer has not been honored at the National Peace Officers’ Memorial on May 15. (These few families may have just recently had their Federal claim approved, making them eligible for honoring at the Memorial Service.)
Past-Year Survivors: Any family member of an officer that was killed in the line of duty in any year prior to 2008. There are actually about 100 historical deaths, many dating back to the 1800’s, that will be included in the reading of names at the Candlelight Vigil on May 13. Survivors from those officers are not considered current-year survivors, but are considered past-year survivors.
Surviving Family Member: The spouse, parents, minor-aged children/stepchildren, adult children, siblings, in-laws, and fiances/significant others.
Affected Co-Worker: For National Police Week planning purposes, an affected co-worker is a law enforcement friend or partner of a fallen officer that would like to attend the co-worker sessions to be held at the National Police Survivors’ Conference. However, affected co-worker do not need to register for National Police Week. They can simply show up for the seminar sessions planned for affected co-workers on May 14 and May 16 at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel.
Memorial Service Escort Officers: The Memorial Service Escort Officer is the one officer who has been sent to Washington, DC, as the representative from the agency of the fallen officer for the specific purpose of escorting the surviving family during the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service on May 15.
Survivor Travel Plans for National Police Week
Survivors should plan to arrive at Reagan National Airport in Washington, DC. If you arrive at Dulles International Airport or Baltimore-Washington International Airport, the rates may be cheaper but you will be on your own to secure transportation to and from the airport to your assigned National Police Week hotel. Survivors who arrive on either Tuesday, May 12, or Wednesday, May 13, at Reagan National Airport will be met by local officers who will escort them through the airport, assist with luggage, and get the survivors to buses that will transport them to their National Police Week hotel.
A May 12 arrival date is highly recommended for West Coast residents since flying on May 13 would make it difficult for them to be in town in time to attend the events held the evening of May 13. Survivors who arrive on May 12 will have a down evening with no planned activities. They may choose to take in the DC sights or simply relax from their trip.
For flight planning purposes, it is also recommended that survivors return home on May 17, the official departure day, so they can take in all the National Police Week activities. If survivors do plan to leave immediately following the May 15 Memorial Service, you should be aware of the fact that the Memorial Service could last for 2 ½ hours, busing back to the hotel could take one hour, and security at the airport could take 1 ½ hours. Flights out of DC before 6:30 p.m. would not be recommended on May 15.
Wednesday, May 13, Information National Police Week Check-In and Candlelight Vigil
National Police Week Check-In and Orientation: On Wednesday, May 13, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. survivors will check-in and pick up information they will need for the coming days. The Plaza Ballroom of the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel will be the check-in location and surviving children who will take part in the “C.O.P.S. Kids/Teens” activities during National Police Week will need to check-in at the Upper Foyer of the Hilton Alexandria Hotel. Orientation sessions will be held every hour on the hour and it is highly recommended that first-year attendees attend one of these orientation sessions.
Shuttle bus service will run throughout the day from overflow hotels to the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel.
Past-year survivors will be denied on-site registration. Only survivors of 2008 can register on site and it is strongly recommended that all survivors pre-register.
The Annual Candlelight Vigil sponsored by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund: Busing from the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel, which is where the majority of current-year survivors will be housed, to the sight of the Annual Candlelight Vigil will begin at 4:15 p.m. and continue through to 7:00 p.m. Busing from the overflow hotels, where returning survivors, chapter representatives, and extended family members will be housed will begin at 5:15 p.m. The Vigil will begin at 8:00 p.m. and conclude at 9:00 p.m. Following a brief intermission, the reading of the newly-engraved names will begin and should conclude shortly after 10:00 p.m. Buses will be available to transport survivors back to their respective hotels.
Thursday, May 14 The first day of the National Police Survivors’ Conference, The first day of the “C.O.P.S. Kids/Teens” Activities
Thursday, May 14, will begin with an 8:00 a.m. continental breakfast. The continental breakfast will be held in the Lower Foyer of the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel for the surviving families.
For the fallen officers’ children/stepchildren and the minor-aged siblings of fallen officers: Between 8:15 and 8:30 a.m. on May 14, children of the fallen officers and minor-aged siblings of fallen officers who are attending “C.O.P.S. Kids/Teens” events will meet in the Magnolia Room of the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel, will be arranged into age-specific groups, and then be transported to the FBI Academy in Quantico, VA, where they will spend the day in group sessions and simply having fun. They will be transported back to the Hilton Hotel by 6:30 p.m. and they will have been fed dinner.
Day care will be provided for infants to 5 year-old children/stepchildren and minor-aged siblings of fallen officers at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel from 8:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on May 14. The National Police Week registration packet will include an area where these children can be pre-registered for their visit. Pre-registration certainly helps with the planning so we have enough workers in that day care facility.
There are no day-care plans made for children who are NOT children/stepchildren of the fallen officers or minor-aged siblings of fallen officers. Here is information to consider and options available for the parents of these children:
1. Since there is a lot of standing and walking involved with the events during National Police Week, you might consider leaving your children at home with relatives.
2. Since there are no day-care options available at the conference hotels due to liability issues, you might bring a caretaker with you to tend to your children while you attend the National Police Survivors’ Conference. The conference is planned for adults and children are not to attend the luncheons or the seminar sessions.
For the Surviving Adult Family Members: The opening session of the National Police Survivors’ Conference for the adult survivors attending National Police Week 2008 will begin at 9:00 a.m. in the Plaza Ballroom of the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel.
Following a short break, short sessions informing survivors about the C.O.P.S. Hands-On Programs planned for the summer and fall months will be held at various locations throughout the hotel. The National Police Week program book will cite exact locations. Lunch will begin at 12:00 noon and will bring everyone back to the Plaza Ballroom at the Hilton. The afternoon of May 14 will be spent in breakout sessions where surviving spouses will meet with other spouses, mothers with other mothers, fathers with other fathers, siblings with other siblings, adult children with other adult children, etc. The day’s sessions will conclude at 4:00 p.m.
At 4:30 p.m., one member of each surviving family that will have a fallen officer honored at the May 15 National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service is asked to meet with the Fraternal Order of Police and its Auxiliary in the Plaza Ballroom for a brief meeting on how families will be assembled the following day for the Memorial Service.
For Memorial Service Escort Officers: Beginning at 9:00 a.m., Memorial Service Escort Officers should plan to attend a short meeting with the Fraternal Order of Police and its Auxiliary. At this meeting Memorial Service Escort Officers will learn of their duties and responsibilities at the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service.
For Affected Co-Workers: At approximately 9:45 a.m. (immediately following the 9:00 a.m. meeting for Memorial Service Escort Officers), debriefing sessions will be held in various meeting rooms in the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel for co-workers affected by the death of a fallen officer. The National Police Week program book will cite specific locations for these sessions in the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel. These debriefing sessions will conclude around noon. Officers are on their own for lunch and there are no planned seminar segments for co-workers the afternoon of May 14. However, there are several sessions planned specifically for affected co-workers the morning of May 16 beginning at 9:00 a.m.
Friday, May 15 National Peace Officers’ Memorial Day
Definitions survivors will need to understand for May 15:
Current-Year Survivors: Any family member from a 2008 line-of-duty death and a few families whose officer has not been honored at the National Peace Officers’ Memorial on May 15. (These few families may have just recently had their Federal claim approved, making them eligible for honoring at the Memorial Service.)
Primary Survivor: The primary survivor is the closest survivor to the fallen officer. In order of recognition, the primary survivor can be the spouse, dependent aged child(ren), parents, independent aged child(ren) and then siblings of the officer being honored at the service. If the officer was not married or the spouse is not present, the responsibility of placing the flower into the memorial wreath will pass down to the next in line to serve as the "primary survivor". That person will have the responsibility of placing the flower or appointing someone else to place the flower at the Memorial Service.
Participating Family Members will include the primary survivor as well as children, parents and siblings of the fallen officer. These members of the family will follow direction for their involvement as participating family members on May 15.
Non-Participating Family Members will include extended family members (aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, sibling spouses, in-laws, etc.), friends and co-workers of the officer being honored. On May 15 these people will need to follow directions that will be printed for non-participating family members.
Memorial Service Escort Officers: The Memorial Service Escort Officer is the one officer who has been sent to Washington, DC, as the representative from the agency of the fallen officer for the specific purpose of escorting the surviving family during the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service on May 15.
The morning of May 15 may seem chaotic to some; but it is organized chaos! Returning survivors and extended family members of 2008 are to take the first buses from their respective hotels at 8:00 a.m. to the Memorial Service site, the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. In the meantime, survivors of 2008 who will be participating in the flower placement at the Memorial Service, will gather at the Plaza Ballroom at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel and be assembled for the Roll Call of Heroes that will take place during the Memorial Service. A light fare breakfast will be provided to these survivors as they board the buses. The bus trip to the Capitol, once all the buses are loaded, should take about 20 minutes.
The Memorial Service will begin at 12:00 noon and could last as long as 2 ½ hours. If you will be bringing babies or infirmed relatives, please plan for their issues during this time frame. Immediately following the Memorial Service, the Memorial wreath will be placed at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. Bus transportation is available from the Memorial Service site to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and back to the survivors’ respective hotels until 6:00 p.m. There are no activities planned for the night of May 15.
Saturday, May 16 Second day of the National Police Survivors’ Conference, Second day of the “C.O.P.S. Kids/Teens” activities, and The Picnic in the Park
The morning of May 16 will begin with continental breakfast for survivors at the Hilton Alexandria Hotel.
For the Fallen Officers’ Children/Stepchildren and the Minor-Aged Siblings of Fallen Officers: Between 8:15 and 8:30 a.m., on May 16, children/stepchildren of the fallen officers and minor-aged siblings of fallen officers who are attending “C.O.P.S. Kids/Teens” events will meet in the Magnolia Room of the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel and wait to be transported to the Fairfax County Criminal Justice Academy. They will be returned to the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel by 4:30 p.m.
Day care will be provided for infants to 5 year olds from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center Hotel for the surviving children/stepchildren and siblings of fallen officers.
For Surviving Family Members and Affected Co-Workers: Breakout sessions for adult surviving family members and affected co-workers will begin at 9:00 a.m. and end at 11:45 a.m. Lunch will be provided to survivors in the Plaza Ballroom beginning at 12:00 noon. The National Police Survivors’ Conference will end at 2:30 p.m. and will give survivors a few short hours to unwind until the final event of National Police Week 2009, the picnic in the park.
Shuttle buses will run from all National Police Week hotels to Ben Brenman Park in Alexandria beginning at 5:15 p.m. A bar-be-que dinner will be served beginning at 6:00 p.m. and the picnic will conclude at 9:00 p.m. The picnic provides the perfect opportunity for survivors to sit back, relax, and talk with the new-found friends made during National Police Week 2009.
Sunday, May 17 Official Departure Day
The official departure day is May 17. C.O.P.S. will have presented each hotel’s concierge with departure times for survivors’ flights (if provided on the survivors’ registrations forms) so the hotel can plan accordingly. Survivors will take the hotel shuttle vans to Reagan National Airport for their departing flight.