Wednesday, May 04, 2005
A Fallen Hero...
A Policeman's Prayer
"Lord, I ask for courage;
Courage to face and conquer my own fears...
Courage to take me where others will not go.
I ask for strength;
Strength of body to protect others...
Strength of spirit to lead others.
I ask dedication;
Dedication to my job to do it well...
Dedication to my community to keep it safe.
Give me, Lord, concern;
For all those who trust me...
And compassion for those who need me
And, please, Lord, through it all; be at my side. "
--Author Unknown
I know a lot of people don't like the police. Honestly, I can understand why....I guess. I blame a lot of this on the media. However, I can't totally blame them. The way people generalize police as a whole, bothers me. For one, I don't like to be grouped with certain "bad police." As I am nothing near that. MOST of my fellow comrades are the same. Grant it, there's always a few bad apples in every bunch. And that goes for EVERY profession. Am I lying?
Although, being a police officer is not my dream job, it's my current job. At the time I applied, it was just something to do until something else better came along. I didn't think about the consequences and the reality of it all. I remember going through the Police Academy thinking, "What the hell am I doing? This is NOT me." I remember being scared. I was terrified when I got my gun. I had never shot a gun before. I remember we had "family night" while in the Academy. It just so happened that my parents were in town at that time. During the program, we were able to voice our concerns and thoughts of policing. My father stood up at one point and the one thing that he said that stuck out the most was, "Policing is not all blood and guts." I think I saw a lot of us breathe out a sigh of relief. At least I know I did. LOL He went on to speak of how policing gives you a chance to help people in many different ways. That alone is what helped to motivate me. For one, I always enjoyed helping people.
Now....it seems these days, helping people means nothing. Your sincerity means nothing. The fact that you're there to protect others from harm, means nothing. People don't give a damn about the police anymore. There is no level of respect. None. Not to mention that people, particulary low lifes, don't value life.
On April 23, I lost a fellow comrade. He was shot and killed by a 19 year old who had recently gotten out of jail for killing somebody when he was 14. What is wrong with our judicial system? On this day, Officer Mark Cross was doing his job, patrolling the streets of Atlanta. He answered the call. Unbeknown to him at the time, was his final call.
This has been heavy on my heart since the day it happened. I couldn't believe it. When in all actuality, I can. Each time an officer is killed in the line of duty, it hits home. It makes me realize the reality of it all. The reality of what I do. This hit home because Mark not only had a wife. He had two small children. As I sat in his funeral, tears just rolled down my face. I kept thinking, "That could be any of us." What really tore my heart up was to see his son, saluting his father's casket. Mark honestly was a good person. He wasn't a crooked cop or a bad police officer. He enjoyed his job. We used to work together but eventually went our seperate ways at some point in our career. I'd see him here and there. We'd speak and go about our ways. Seriously, he was a nice guy. I hate that the next and final time I saw him, he was lying in a coffin. He didn't deserve to die. Nobody DESERVES to die. I could go on and on. But I just wanted to recognize and say R.I.P. Mark Cross. You are truly missed!
October 23, 1973 - April 23, 2004
Mark's son saluting him at funeral
Atlanta Police Honor Guard
"Lord, I ask for courage;
Courage to face and conquer my own fears...
Courage to take me where others will not go.
I ask for strength;
Strength of body to protect others...
Strength of spirit to lead others.
I ask dedication;
Dedication to my job to do it well...
Dedication to my community to keep it safe.
Give me, Lord, concern;
For all those who trust me...
And compassion for those who need me
And, please, Lord, through it all; be at my side. "
--Author Unknown
I know a lot of people don't like the police. Honestly, I can understand why....I guess. I blame a lot of this on the media. However, I can't totally blame them. The way people generalize police as a whole, bothers me. For one, I don't like to be grouped with certain "bad police." As I am nothing near that. MOST of my fellow comrades are the same. Grant it, there's always a few bad apples in every bunch. And that goes for EVERY profession. Am I lying?
Although, being a police officer is not my dream job, it's my current job. At the time I applied, it was just something to do until something else better came along. I didn't think about the consequences and the reality of it all. I remember going through the Police Academy thinking, "What the hell am I doing? This is NOT me." I remember being scared. I was terrified when I got my gun. I had never shot a gun before. I remember we had "family night" while in the Academy. It just so happened that my parents were in town at that time. During the program, we were able to voice our concerns and thoughts of policing. My father stood up at one point and the one thing that he said that stuck out the most was, "Policing is not all blood and guts." I think I saw a lot of us breathe out a sigh of relief. At least I know I did. LOL He went on to speak of how policing gives you a chance to help people in many different ways. That alone is what helped to motivate me. For one, I always enjoyed helping people.
Now....it seems these days, helping people means nothing. Your sincerity means nothing. The fact that you're there to protect others from harm, means nothing. People don't give a damn about the police anymore. There is no level of respect. None. Not to mention that people, particulary low lifes, don't value life.
On April 23, I lost a fellow comrade. He was shot and killed by a 19 year old who had recently gotten out of jail for killing somebody when he was 14. What is wrong with our judicial system? On this day, Officer Mark Cross was doing his job, patrolling the streets of Atlanta. He answered the call. Unbeknown to him at the time, was his final call.
This has been heavy on my heart since the day it happened. I couldn't believe it. When in all actuality, I can. Each time an officer is killed in the line of duty, it hits home. It makes me realize the reality of it all. The reality of what I do. This hit home because Mark not only had a wife. He had two small children. As I sat in his funeral, tears just rolled down my face. I kept thinking, "That could be any of us." What really tore my heart up was to see his son, saluting his father's casket. Mark honestly was a good person. He wasn't a crooked cop or a bad police officer. He enjoyed his job. We used to work together but eventually went our seperate ways at some point in our career. I'd see him here and there. We'd speak and go about our ways. Seriously, he was a nice guy. I hate that the next and final time I saw him, he was lying in a coffin. He didn't deserve to die. Nobody DESERVES to die. I could go on and on. But I just wanted to recognize and say R.I.P. Mark Cross. You are truly missed!
October 23, 1973 - April 23, 2004
Mark's son saluting him at funeral
Atlanta Police Honor Guard
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I just wanted to say hi to a not only a fellow Georgian ( I currently live in Stockbridge Georgia),but a fellow law enforcement officer. Although I am currently not one at this time. I was serving as a deputy sheriff in Roanoke Virginia prior to relocating here to Georgia. I was with the department for 3 years when my husband's job relocated us to Georgia. Although it was stressful, I can say that there were actually moments when I truly found my service as a law enforcment officer very rewarding. It is a very dangerous and demanding job. As a matter of fact, not long after graduating the academy, one of my fellow academy classmates who was an officer in a neighboring county was nearly shot and killed while attempting to serve a warrant.
From time to time I have considered going back into law enforcement. Then I consider that Georgia is a vastly different environment than Roanoke Va. (far more dangerous) Who knows, maybe someday before I get too old and out of shape,I may consider taking up the Law enforcement mantle again. If I do, I would love to become a police helicopter pilot ( I would be marrying my love for aviation and piloting skills with my job.) Posted by Synthia. Email me at Synthia30281@yahoo.com . To see my in uniform dept. picture as well as aviation pix go to http://flyingchef.bravejournal.com. Click on my photo album on the side of the page.
From time to time I have considered going back into law enforcement. Then I consider that Georgia is a vastly different environment than Roanoke Va. (far more dangerous) Who knows, maybe someday before I get too old and out of shape,I may consider taking up the Law enforcement mantle again. If I do, I would love to become a police helicopter pilot ( I would be marrying my love for aviation and piloting skills with my job.) Posted by Synthia. Email me at Synthia30281@yahoo.com . To see my in uniform dept. picture as well as aviation pix go to http://flyingchef.bravejournal.com. Click on my photo album on the side of the page.
# posted by 
: Thu May 05, 03:48:00 PM
: Thu May 05, 03:48:00 PM 
I wondered how you were holding up with that. It has to rip at the heart. And his baby saluting--so bittersweet. *smh*
# posted by : Thu May 05, 07:00:00 PM
: Thu May 05, 07:00:00 PM
I have to admit, I'm one of those folks who never ever trust the police. Maybe it has something to do with whenever I really needed them, it took 5 hours for them to actually get to my house. I never really reflected on the fact that they jeopardize their lives everyday for people they don't even know. I think I'll have to change my thoughts on cops.
Wow. My condolences to the family. Hope you are holding up too. *hug*
R.I.P. Officer Cross
*speechless*
R.I.P. Officer Cross
*speechless*
People always complain about how long it takes the police to come when they call. I don't know about other departments but I know that with APD, we have a high volume of 911 calls. The calls are prioritized. For example, shootings vs. theft from autos. Regardless of what time the theft from auto call comes up, the shooting will take precedence. When people call the police, they always expect them to be there within the next few minutes of them calling. In additon to that, there's always a shortage of officers. The volume of 911 calls vs. the number of officers, doesn't even compare. I'm speaking for APD. Officers are leaving the police force every day and I don't blame them. Most of the citizens and/or some departments are working against us. Not for or WITH us. Truth be told. Why should we put our lives on the line for people who don't give a damn about us? That's just how I feel. As I stated in this entry, thinking about Officer Cross and other officers killed in the line of duty makes me realize the reality of it all. And to me...it's just not worth it.
It is ironic that we complain about police yet they are the first person we call when we need help.
I sometimes question some police decisions, especially those that don't involve threats to their lives, like why do they do high speed chases in L.A. all day everyday? But as for the other stuff I sympathize. They want to go home each day and have a job that puts that simple desire at risk.
I also find it bad that activists protest when a cop shoots a suspect, but say nothing when a suspect shoots a cop. What kind of thinking is that? Do criminals have more leeway to kill people. What are these activist saying to criminals.
I sometimes question some police decisions, especially those that don't involve threats to their lives, like why do they do high speed chases in L.A. all day everyday? But as for the other stuff I sympathize. They want to go home each day and have a job that puts that simple desire at risk.
I also find it bad that activists protest when a cop shoots a suspect, but say nothing when a suspect shoots a cop. What kind of thinking is that? Do criminals have more leeway to kill people. What are these activist saying to criminals.
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# posted by : Tue Nov 29, 02:02:00 AM
: Tue Nov 29, 02:02:00 AM << Home
