The interior of our iconic Town Clock is now illuminated thanks to our local Surf City Santa Cruz Kiwanis Club. This light and plaque were installed by Kiwanis in memory of Sergeant Butch Baker and Detective Elizabeth Butler.
Their light will shine to remind us every time we pass by the clock at night.
Kelly Baker was on hand with Chief Vogel at the dedication ceremony
The Chief was also joined by the Kiwanis President Bert Bly and Bob Dewitt. Bob handled the installation of the plaque on the Town Clock.
Special Thanks to Kiwanis member Richard Emigh for being the driving force behind this project, and to Robert Matthews for his expert installation. The kind and generous hearts in clubs like our Surf City Santa Cruz Kiwanis Club are what makes our community a great place! We are honored by your incredibly thoughtful gift to Butch and Elizabeth.
For
a while there last night….it was not looking good for the home team, as wild
Washington, DC weather threatened to force cancellation of the National Law Enforcement
Memorial Candlelight Vigil.
The
angry skies cleared up just in time for the show to go on. Our SCPD team was on hand to
participate. A number of us watched the
live-stream of a great ceremony.
Here
are some photos sent back from our team in Washington, DC.
Escorted to the vigil
Speakers and Distinguished Guests
Candles being lit
Elizabeth's family is shown on the big screen
The "Thin Blue Line" over the crowd
A very moving ceremony. We are proud of the SCPD representation at this event. Thanks to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund for all your work on this week's events.
Day
2 at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Ceremonies as part of
National Police Week.
Our
team kept plenty busy with activities and touring.
Officer
Ganzel making an outline impression of Sergeant Baker’s place on the wall while Officer Trog appears to be supervising.
The
day included a tour of Nationals Park, home of the Washington Nationals
baseball team.
We secretly put a whammy on the
place to help out our Giants in their next visit. Sergeant Mike Harms heated up in the bullpen…..just
in case!
Back
here in Santa Cruz, Mayor Robinson presented Deputy Chief Martinez with a
Proclamation honoring National Police Week.
The
day is wrapping up with a candlelight vigil.
The Butler family with Officer Karina Cecena
The Baker family at the vigil
Candlelight Vigil crowd gathering
Drum Corps at Candlelight Vigil
Chief Vogel at the vigil
We
were able to live-stream the vigil to the police department where we were able
to watch the ceremony and feel a part of our family back in Washington. But....As only Butch and Elizabeth would have it....there was a rain delay of the ceremony.
As of this hour they have not yet started back up from the rain delay.
Mayor Lynn Robinson and Councilmember Pamela
Comstock loaded us up with good things to eat while we waited and watched.
This
week is National Police Week, celebrated and recognized all across this great
country of ours.
Chief
Vogel, the Baker & Butler families and an additional contingent of 12 SCPD personnel are back in Washington, DC to
observe the week and participate in the National ceremonies.
This
week holds a number of activities in Washington, DC, to include a ceremony at
the National Law Enforcement Memorial to honor those who were killed in the
line of duty in 2013.
The
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC and is the nation’s monument honoring federal, state and local law
enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty.
The
Memorial has two blue-gray marble walls. The walls are carved with the
names of more than 20,000 officers who have been killed in the line of duty
throughout U.S. history, dating back to the first known death in 1791. This
year, 286 names will be added to the wall, including Sergeant Loran “Butch”
Baker Jr. and Detective Elizabeth Butler.
Kelly produced this frame to leave at the wall.
Here is Elizabeth's spot place on the wall
Today,
the events include the arrival of the Police Unity Tour bicycle ride to honor
each of the fallen officers.
Tuesday is
a candlelight vigil. Our personnel in
Washington D.C. will be present and participating in that ceremony. We
will be live-streaming the candlelight vigil here at SCPD so our staff who
could not make the trip can watch the ceremony.
Looks like some of our team infiltrated Sam Farr's Office!!! We will stop at nothing to get our Federal funding :-)
Locally,
the week will be honored by City Council with a proclamation read by Mayor
Robinson at the regular City Council meeting on Tuesday afternoon.
We'll keep you updated with photos as the week progresses.
May
5, 2014 marked the enrollment ceremony for the California Peace Officer’s
Memorial. The Santa Cruz Police
Department was on hand to witness the enrollment of Sergeant Butch Baker and
Detective Elizabeth Butler. Their names are
now forever engraved in bronze upon the memorial wall.
Chief
Kevin Vogel was invited by State Attorney General Kamala Harris to be the
ceremony keynote speaker, and he did not disappoint. Chief Vogel “knocked it out of the park” with
his speech honoring all the California officers who gave the ultimate sacrifice
in 2013.
In
his remarks, Chief Vogel commented:
"The names we enroll here today serve as reminders of
the best and brightest among us – the ones who chose one of the most complex
and difficult of professions, the ones who don the uniform and accept the
greatest risk of all.
We
can never replace those we lost, but by honoring their sacrifice and
remembering what made them special, we can keep them close and make them part
of our everyday lives.
We must never stop telling their stories, never stop
taking inspiration from their courage and never forget the families left behind."
This portion of his speech can be seen here on our YouTube Channel:
Chief Vogel addresses the crowd on the Jumbo-Tron
The
day started at 5:15 AM where we traveled in a large caravan from Santa Cruz to the CHP Academy
in Sacramento. Even young Marcel Cathrein was feeling the strain of the early morning travel time.
With all the cars and personnel, we only had one vehicle casualty, as Lieutenant Dan Flippo’s motorcycle suffered a
flat rear tire on Highway 5 just outside of Lathrop.
Thankfully, we had the amazing Ken Morse from
Lifesaver Towing along to rescue Dan.
Ken towed Dan to the CHP Academy.
Lt. Flippo with his Rescuer, Ken Morse of Lifesaver Towing
We were able to get a plug in Dan's tire, so he could participate in the procession. After the ceremony and before riding back, we got Dan’s tire
replaced at Mid-Cal Cycle, a local shop.
At the CHP Academy,
we met up with a couple hundred officers from agencies throughout the
State. We participated in a procession
from the CHP Academy to the State Capitol for the ceremonies.
SCPD Motor Team leads the procession in
SCPD
participated in a gauntlet of officers to form the “Walk of Honor” for families
of the fallen officers.
SCPD Team forming for the Walk of Honor Gauntlet
The SCPD Honor
Guard posted the colors for the opening of the ceremony.
In
addition to our own Chief Kevin Vogel, the speakers included Governor Jerry
Brown, California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Gorre Cantil-Sakauye, and
Attorney General Kamala Harris.
Our
contingent included most of the personnel from the police department.
SCPD Team at CHP Academy
Chief Vogel with the Motor Team
A few of our amazing civilian staff here at SCPD
We were even joined by Volunteer Debbie Elston, Mayor Lynn Robinson and County Supervisor Zach Friend
(still a member of the PD family) who rode in the caravan and procession with us.
Mayor Robinson with the Classic 1961 Chevy Biscayne patrol car
Brother Zach just lookin' for a hug
It was a great day to join our fellow officers from across the State to honor Butch and Elizabeth. So, finally in the words of Chief Vogel:
We know that even though your watch has ended, the
freedoms we enjoy today are because of you and those enrolled here before you.
My fellow law enforcement professionals, my fellow
Californians, we must never forget the example they have set for all of us.
We must never forget their smiles, their laughs or
their many achievements serving the communities they loved so dearly.
These
brave officers leave unfinished work in our hands and I am confident that we
are up to the challenge.
