A badge represents honor, integrity, service and dedication.
 

The men and women who wear a badge made a courageous decision to dedicate their lives protecting people in their community.

Behind every badge is a human being, just like me and you. A real person with emotions, feelings, families, likes, dislikes and even their very own flaws. All too often, society seems to forget that.

A small, but growing, part of the public sees law enforcement officers as just a badge, a uniform, a superhuman, and unfortunately sometimes an enemy. A big reason for this... influence from movies and media. Most civilians have very little knowledge of what a police officer actually does on the job.

While I don't know everything that happens on the job, I can tell you that most of them have seen unimaginable things, things that no human being should ever have to see. They sweat, bleed, and even cry for people that they don't even know. They wear a badge to serve a public that at times can appear thankless and ungrateful. Despite that, they still answer every call for help. 

My purpose in this post is to remind you that these police officers are not just a badge or a uniform. They are not superhumans. They are just regular people that go above and beyond to keep peace in our community. They are your neighbors and friends.

I ask that you please take the time to say thank you. Honor those brave selfless individuals. For those who dedicate their lives to protecting you.

Officer Garden & K9 Officer Brak
 

He's more than just a police officer.
 

I met Brett when I transferred to SIU to finish up college, he was already a police officer. I knew nothing about LEO life. Over the last 8 years we've gotten married and have been blessed with two amazing kids. He doesn't just get to go to work and come home and that's it. It follows him everywhere, but some how he manages to make it work. When we go out he gets to face the door, he has to sleep through our three year old singing(screaming) "Let it go, Let it go!" in the morning and he's only been in bed a few hours, sometimes the only way he gets to see the kids is through video messages for days at a time, but we make it work. Our daughter responds to K9 commands and I'm sure our son will too when he is older. I've gone to plenty of holidays, parties, ect. without him. I don't brag about him like I wish I could because I don't want to get into a debate about the police, and I wouldn't dare wear a police wife shirt out of the house most of the time. We have date nights on weekdays, sometimes we go days without seeing each other awake, and I sleep alone four nights a week. I have a dark place in the back of my mind where I lock away my worries about his job. I chose this life and I wouldn't change it for the world. So next time you see an officer know that he or she is so much more than that. - Kacey Garden