If you pass Michele Wollert’s Shumway neighborhood home today, you will likely see a blue light in her window.
“I’m hoping that the police officers who patrol this area see that and understand that they’re appreciated,” she said.
The blue light is one of the ways that organizers of National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day are asking citizens to show their thanks to the men and women whose job is to protect and serve.
The event asks community members to show appreciation to a deputy, officer or trooper by telling them thanks, sending a note, wearing blue or sharing a positive story about police on social media. Mayors throughout Clark County have made proclamations or are planning to make proclamations honoring the day locally.
Wollert said she’s had a good amount of interactions with the Vancouver police through a number of organizations she’s worked for and each time, she said, she’s walked away impressed.
“I think it’s important to thank the people who protect us … they care very much about the people they serve,” she said.
Though she plans to personally email a few sworn officers she’s worked with, she also may drop off some cookies at one of the agency’s precincts.
But she said that the symbolism of the blue light is one that she likes the most.
“It’s an easy way to show support, a visible way to show support and it’s kind of fun.”
The event, organized by Concerns of Police Survivors, or COPS, was organized in response to the recent national news that has led to animosity toward police.
For COPS, based in Camden, Mo., one of the events hits home locally. The police-involved shooting death of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., sparked protests and civil unrest. Less than a month earlier, New York City police officers had used a choke hold to arrest Eric Garner, which resulted in Garner’s death.
The incidents received national media attention and launched a debate on law enforcement’s relationship with the African-American community.
“There is a need to show law enforcement officers that our citizens recognize the difficult and sometimes impossible career they have chosen, in public service to us all,” event organizers wrote on the COPS website.
The organization points to startling statistics that speak to this: On average, between 105 and 203 officers die in the line of duty each year, 50,000 officers are assaulted in the line of duty each year, 14,000 officers are injured in the line of duty each year, and more than 300 officers commit suicide each year.
Washougal Police Chief Ron Mitchell said that in light of these negative national events, the day of appreciation will mean that much more to him and his officers.
“A lot of the times, you tend to hear just complaints,” he said.
Mitchell said that every so often a thank-you letter will come to the agency. These letters are included in an officer’s file and the officer is recognized for his or her actions.
“Those things are always pleasant to receive,” he said. “It doesn’t happen a lot and that’s not to say that the people aren’t grateful, but you’re not going to get a letter of thanks from someone you arrest.”
Though incidents in Missouri and New York are noteworthy, Mitchell said that for the most part, police officers are good people trying to do good work.
“Honestly, when you think about how many police officers there are throughout the country and the millions of contacts every day … it tells you something is going right,” Mitchell said.
That is the same reason why Wollert is making an effort to show that she is grateful for the people behind the badges.
“They’re working with people at their worst, at times in stress and crisis. It’s difficult,” she said. “They’re in a job that can be very thankless … but I know they just really care about keeping this community safe.”
