Fallen law enforcement officers honored with Bremen memorial wall

Bremen honors fallen law enforcement with wall

The city of Bremen unveiled a memorial wall and eternal flame on Peace Officers Memorial Day to permanently honor local law enforcement officers and first responders killed in the line of duty.  

BREMEN, Ga. - The city of Bremen unveiled a permanent memorial wall Friday to honor fallen law enforcement officers and first responders on the official observance of Peace Officers Memorial Day. The monument honors those who died or were disabled in the line of duty.

Bremen law enforcement memorial

What we know:

The city of Bremen dedicated a new memorial wall on Friday featuring the names of fallen state heroes etched in stone. The ceremony coincided with Peace Officers Memorial Day, a national observance signed into law by President John F. Kennedy in 1962.

The monument features an eternal flame and honors individuals like Bremen Fire Rescue Firefighter David L. Smith, whose end of watch was June 4, 1971. Local families gathered at the site to share memories and support one another.

Family members remember loved ones

What we don't know:

Spouses and parents of the fallen expressed how much the new monument means to their healing process. "It's not about how they died, it's ultimately about how they live," said Mary Kate Burson, whose husband, Joseph, was killed in 2021.

Jacqueline Roberts, whose 34-year-old son, Harrelson County Sheriff's Deputy Alex Roberts, was killed in 2010 while coming home for lunch, said she plans to visit often. "I'll be coming by here every time I come to Bremen, even if it's just to sit on the bench," Roberts said.

Decades of service honored

By the numbers:

The wall remembers state heroes across multiple decades of service to their communities. Kenneth Cox attended the ceremony to honor his wife, Cathy Anne, a code enforcement officer who was killed in 2008.

She had just turned 50 years old and had been on the job for 30 years at the time of her death. "The biggest thing that families do, and it's been 18 years for me, is families don't want to be forgotten, or the names of their officers don't wanna be forgotten," Cox said.