Outside the Law Enforcement Memorial at the Missouri Capitol, a patriotic wreath started out as a blank slate Saturday but soon filled with dozens of white carnations, each one representing a fallen law enforcement official.
Hundreds of families, friends and law enforcement officials from across Missouri gathered during the 32nd annual Missouri Law Enforcement Memorial Service to pay tribute and remember those who died in the line of duty.
While family and friends placed flowers on the wreaths in honor of those they have lost, law enforcement officials also place wreaths around the memorial.
The white carnation Marilyn Bassett, of Vienna, placed on the wreath paid tribute to her husband, Roy Bassett, former Maries County sheriff.
On Sept. 23, 1994, Roy Bassett was shot and killed while helping a Missouri Highway patrolman during a roadside stop on U.S. 63, about a mile south of Vienna. The two suspects involved in the shooting were wanted on bank robbery charges in Indiana and they had several weapons and rounds of ammunition in their vehicles.
Marilyn Bassett said she has attended the memorial every year.
"I think it's to honor those who are living still and to pay homage to the ones that have gone before," she said.
Four law enforcement officials who died in 2018, as well as five who died between 1895-1971, were also honored during the memorial service, hosted by the Missouri Chapter of Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS).
Clinton Police Officer Christopher Morton, Miller County Deputy Sheriff Casey Shoemate, Greene County Deputy Sheriff Aaron Roberts and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Melissa Morrow died in 2018.
Green County Deputy Sheriff John Keller died in 1895.
Barren Fork Township Constable Joday Wilson died in 1905.
Macon Police Department Officer Claude Whyles died in 1936.
Steele Police Department Chief William "Bill" Stanfield and Missouri Department of Liquor Control Agent Thomas Greer died in 1971.
Their names will be placed on the Wall of Honor at the Law Enforcement Memorial.
It's the 25th anniversary of the Law Enforcement Memorial at the Capitol, said Mike O'Connell, communications director for the Missouri Department of Public Safety.
The memorial service not only unites the communities, but it also reminds people their loved ones are not forgotten, MO COPS Survivor Liaison Staci Taylor-Brakhage said.
"(The names) go back (more than a) hundred years on the wall and as family members and as agencies, we kind of forget a little bit about that and as a community," she said. "It's not spoken about as much so that's what we hope to get from that, just the reminder that our loved ones are always with us. They are always remembered."
There was also a candlelight vigil last Friday to pay tribute to law enforcement officials who died in the line of duty.
On Friday, Gov. Mike Parson ordered the Capitol dome and the Law Enforcement Memorial shine blue in honor of the state's law enforcement officers.
"Law enforcement officers in Missouri and throughout our nation protect us every day without second-guessing the potential impacts on them," Parson said in a Friday news release. "They selflessly spring into action to maintain the safety of others, and sadly, some give their lives doing so. Illuminating the Capitol and Law Enforcement Memorial blue is just one small way for us to show our sincere thanks to these brave men and women."
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