Lakeport >> There will be a memorial ceremony to honor fallen Lake County safety officers at the Lake County Museum Park on Friday. The event, which is hosted by the Lake County Sheriff’s Chaplains, will begin at 5 p.m., and is open to the public.
The service will remember five from Lake County who gave their lives in the performance of their duties. From law enforcement, they are sheriff George Kemp, deputy William Hoyt, and Sgt. Richard Helbush. Firemen Michael Mattioda and Mathew Black, who lost their lives, will be honored. Also, the names of California law enforcement officers that died in 2014 will be read.
This ceremony coincides with National Police Week, May 10 through 16. According to the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Fund website, the names of 273 officers killed in the line of duty are being added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C. These 273 officers include 117 officers who were killed during 2014, plus 156 officers who died in previous years but whose stories of sacrifice had been lost to history until now.
The National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend will be held Oct. 3 and 4. More than 100 firefighters who died in the line of duty in 2013 were honored during the 2014 weekend. The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation has not published the number of men and women to be memorialized this coming October on its web site. According to the U. S. Fire Administration website, a federal government publication, 87 firemen died while serving the public in 2014.
Honor these fallen safety officers, and those men and women that put their lives on the line every day.
The Lake County Museum Park is located at 255 N. Main St. in Lakeport.
