when everyone please take your seats our ceremony is just about to begin [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] [Music] foreign Officers Memorial Service if you will please remain standing for the presentation of Colors by the basically thank you oh beautiful birthday [Music] foreign [Music] at the twilight's lastly always brought stripes and bright stars we want were so gallantly streaming and the rockets about bursting in air gay proof through the night that our flag was still there oh say does that Star Spangled Banner yet [Applause] [Music] or the land and I'm not free and the home of the Earth [Music] [Applause] foreign it oh [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] these are made standing for the invocation to be delivered by Mesa Police Department chaplain and our friend Pastor David [Music] our father and our God we come at this very moment remember those who have given their lives forward the city with a passion to protect our community that we pray even right now that we would be mindful remember you have gifted these officers who are safe the best of their ability sometimes they're about things [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] rebellion and selfless service must continue to be remembered and revered by us all I want to recognize Smith Pearson than the watch was November 12th of 1913. officer Stephen Paul Pollard and to watch November 27 19 Sergeant Brandon Mendoza and a watch between 12. the president means a great deal to the families [Music] I want to acknowledge the family member police officers and family members and Friends basically police Sergeant random and those are here to my left but also like to take just a moment to recognize there's a passive retire Chief Jam Strauss the first female chief of Mesa Police Department's history this evening we'd also like to acknowledge some honored elected officials that we have here as guests your honorable Mayor John Childs vice mayor and seasonal radio agreement council member and council member Scott Summers city manager Chris Brady and other members of management including many staff and directors who daily exemplify the Mesa way and finally we want to recognize our numerous first responding Partners including Mason fire Medical Department along with law enforcement members from federal state today we're honored to have forecasts to meet you today goodness I didn't introduce the first one it really doesn't need an introduction it's none other than our own cheap 10 cost welcome I want to thank um and they continue to do a great job so I wanted to thank them and I wanted to acknowledge our incredible honor guard we're here right right to my right right in front of our Memorial to honor the officers the base officers I also wanted to Welcome to the families of our fallen officers to friends the extended family we're just honored to have you all here today so thank you for coming and you know we cannot we cannot do this job without this the mayor of the city council our city management it is appreciated beyond measure so we really appreciate your support and everything you do for us in our community and your service as well I wanted to acknowledge my fellow Department directors and City staff that are here today and those that aren't here today that continue to support us every single day on what we do in public safety for both police and fire thank you for everything you do every single day and you're still in your serve and also other electric visions [Music] a lot of you here today again that partnership is very unusual my partnership is all purpose again so thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come here today I want to recognize my executive staff and staff that are here today other words appreciated and I work during times like this as well so thank you and our brothers and sisters I mentioned uh just a little while ago from the fire department and not just the Mesa fire medical team but all the fire firefighters and paramedics and everybody who works fire that are in the crowd both retired and our current sworn thank you for everything that you guys do we truly are brothers and sisters in this line of work and then our officers and our professional staff everybody that you see most are too shy to even have a seat next to you right A lot of people standing in the back but thank you for the work that you do every day we're going to talk a little bit about that more down the road here but thank you for your attendance here today and finally and definitely not these is our community this serve our community our community members that are here today or some that might be more later a heartfelt thing exposed to you because without your dedication and your and your of Public Safety we wouldn't be able to do the job that we do today and be able to honor the families that we have here today so thank you for your support 74 hours a day every single day our officers answered thousands 350 000 calls a year or options go to people's worst day and they don't hesitate they don't hesitate to have the courage to go towards danger they don't hesitate to have the courage to be an empathetic here to have the passion for our community and they do so every single day and they thrive in crisis and they put their lives on the line as our citizens are safe quite frankly our officers are heroic I mean heroism started with the Mesa Police Department and what we're here today or with Marshall Hiram Smith Peterson [Music] was our Marshall and on one day November 12 1913 within two football fields of where I stand talking to you today right around the corner to see the crime in progress I mean it knows nothing about the suspects but he knows this that he's not going to allow that to happen and he went towards the danger and he went towards the two suspects not knowing that they were armed and they had an intent and he challenged those suspects and they got in a confrontation that he was shot in the middle right around the corner here doing his job taking on violent criminals violent armed criminals in our community to make our citizens safer in 1913. we also remember officer Stephen officer Pollard was an officer here for a year and a half Stephen on November 27 1994 was doing exactly what we asked him to do what he did every day he pulled over an impaired driver an impaired driver quite frankly that was going to victimize somebody else's family possibly right and he's taken that driver off the street returning back to the driver's side of his vehicle when he was struck and killed feloniously by a suspect who drove by and struck him and then continued to flee the scene until he was apprehended by one of our officers who's the commander here with the police department today to the family to Stephen's wife to his daughter to his mom to every single family member extended family member and friends we remember Stephen's dedication his commitment to community his compassion his empathy the way he served the sense of humor the way that he the way he projected himself as an officer every single day is something that we will never forget and it's what we strive to be as base officers every single day is the table and he will never be forgotten and we will always remember him and our hearts go out to you Sergeant Brandon Mendoza was taken from us on May 12 2000 2014. Sergeant Mendoza was on his way home from work we're going to shift when his vehicle was hit head on by a drunk driver going the long way on a freeway he was rushed to the hospital for the past he survived by his by his parents his two brothers his sister and their families grandparents nieces nephews Aunts Uncles and to Marianne his loss in department and to our department will be built forever Brandon had been an exceptional officer [Music] the job but there's there's a handful of officers that go above and beyond the Call of Duty and Brandon was that officer his dedication to his community his community he took it to another level he took literally an entire neighborhood [Music] beyond anything that we could ever expect and he set the tone for us forever and how what and what community places should be every day by that neighborhood he's remembered every day by our community and by our family and you will never be forgotten and he's an example just like Stephen just like Cameron Peterson or what a Mesa officer should be and we are proud to honor him again here today just sharing some thoughts the commonalities between all three of these stories it's courage right it's courage to go towards the unknown to take on armed suspects to put your life on the line it's courage to go out and stop prepare drivers and to be the type of officer that is always putting themselves above somebody else above others that servant leadership that Stephen embodied every single day and it's the courage to go beyond the Call of Duty literally and lead and be a leader from the front like Brandon did so now I'm going to talk to our current officers see every year we have our officers that are working the street here today and then we have either an academy class or this piece we have our officers that are out in training right now and some of our lateral officers that are coming in and I promise you that the best of the brightest they're our future they're our finest but for you you need to continue your journey as an officer and understand that we need you and not just as an organization the community needs you they need what you bring every single day they need you to be empathetic have pass your grave they need you to go towards Danger and use your judgment every single day in your training to be the best you can be you need to honor these officers with your actions every single day every single call with everything that you do again to the families thank you for allowing us to continue to honor your loved ones they'll always be part of our family and we love them and for everybody else here today thank you for taking the time to come and spend time with us to honor these phone officers thank you very much [Music] special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco farms and explosives for the ATF Brendan Iver is our next speaker Sac Ivers currently signed to the Phoenix field division which consists of offices of both the State of Arizona and the northern half of New Mexico over his 20 years of law enforcement experience he has served as a local police officer in Texas a training agent in Georgia teaching at the Academy and field assignments first in Phoenix Oklahoma City Chicago now back in Phoenix as a special agent in charge his responsibilities now include the criminal enforcement of federal laws and Industry regulatory investigations pertaining to Firearms explosives and arson foreign officers [Music] members of the law enforcement community and citizens advice to honor The Life and Legacy of the fallen officers who sacrificed their lives [Music] law enforcement is a calling it truly is law enforcement we don't get into law enforcement to get rich back if you look up Fords the average salary for a police officer across the station is 67 thousand dollars and that's the average there's a big lessons so what is it it truly is that called is that calling to Serve and Protect those who can't to dedicate their lives in service of others to dedicate their lives to keep order in a chaotic world to dedicate their lives to keep the evil that exists in our society away to dedicate Our Lives law enforcement lives in these communities get off work and it's all done they have we have a commitment to our communities that he wants to be brought with violence they don't want to be intimidated every Community just wants to go about their daily life intimidation it's just not when you decide to join this calling this calling reaches out to you decide to join it go through a Law Enforcement Academy of some sort we learned a bunch of things driving in other states and then when you graduate from the academy Shield badge okay you can wear it on your chest as you grow up in the ranks of maybe joint detectives to get it on your belt it has a little weight to it and there's a reason for that you know in early God you learn and take pride in knowing that when you are needed you will Rush with that shield on your chest towards that danger in front of those that cannot protect themselves it also reminds those who see it every day it shows our community that we're here to protect and keep our citizens safe right our job is to trust ourselves into evil while telling all the good citizens of this nation to run the other way by safety this law enforcement officer takes pride in putting on that badge takes pride in knowing when they when the shift is over they'll build their job and then a little bit just to keep that Community safe we often talk about the sacrifices that we make in this profession we often Overlook or fail to recognize the good news of course we recognize the very good deeds above and beyond the award ceremonies there's hundreds of Good Eats at each law enforcement does on a daily basis when they report will never be able to measure the impact Ed with work 24 hours to get their ship went along they had to go to court to testify we're going to that coffee shop we just need a little bit more of that goat juice right just to make it through the day and they stopped as someone else is going in there foreign such dire need they pick up a phone call 9-1-1 and say I need the police here for a multitude of issues Petty crimes mental health related and oftentimes this officer clears the scene and has fixed or at least mitigated an issue that has possibly even pedestrated for years given the proper information plus we've saved people's lives a law enforcement officer doesn't only enforce the laws but is called upon it to be a mental health professional a brother a sister or even a parent and these Deeds can never be forgotten and then their sacrifice law enforcement use their sacraments there are not many other professions in this nation that require some sacrifice law enforcement knows that every time they put on that badge and walk out that door there's a chance that's why we're here today we know when we say goodbye to our loved ones we've worship then there's a chance we're not walking back through that door to say hello we know we may never give our loved ones a kiss on the forehead or took our kids into bed again take them to practice help them on the test or get ready for a test tonight for those of you in attendance please be safe you know we can't keep our communities safe without each and every interview it's not a Law Enforcement issue thank you place that Shield thank you for all the great weeds you did while you served [Music] was your job that sense of Safety and Security [Music] is council member Mark Freeman Mr Freeman's Mesa Roots Run Deep as his ancestor the ancestor Charles prisman was one of the founding fathers of Mason this family is farmed in the valley since 1878. [Music] in addition to farming he spent 31 years with Mesa fire Medical Department he's a captain paramedic before retiring in 2001. serves as a city of mesa's Public Safety chairperson please welcome you know this Memorial it's touchy to me and I think thank you for the beautiful weather we have tonight I mean it could be 105 degrees Miss Arizona you know I'm very humbled to do this and speak because it's public safety personnel you know we go to work every day expecting everything to be okay our families expect us to come home and our shift ends and we will start again the next day Brad Mendoza would have to work that morning he didn't think on his way home driver Steve Pollard was simply fulfilling his duty on shift when he was hit by a car on U.S 60. the same goes for Marshall Peterson tonight we're here to remember the selfless commitment to serving the citizens of Mesa that the lives lost be a strong reminder that we can all do better we can all live with human kindness at the Forefront of everything we do as a member of the public safety family myself I am strong believer in the importance of this kind of watch memorials I have attended many over the years and my heart has always filled with love and compassion for not only for the Fallen firefighter but police officers and their families but I appreciate the adjustments their families and colleagues have had to make in their lives forever I want you to know as chair of the Mesa Public Safety Committee we are committed to supporting our Police Department we continue to learn from these tragic situations and work hard to constantly improve the safety and well-being of our public safety personnel who are committed to serve our community so their lives can be better better thank you our last speaker for today's service is The Honorable Mayor John Giles mayor Giles was born and raised in Mesa he was elected mayor of Mace Arizona in 2014 and began a second full term in January of 2021. education building bases Workforce and Public Safety are his top priorities he is a member of the United States Conference of mayor's Board of Trustees and serves as chair of their immigration task force he's also a proud member of the mayor's challenge to end veterans homelessness please welcome mayor Jones thank you chief I have to say I look forward to this event every year it really is one of the more special things that we do as as elected officials in the city of Mesa is to show our support and appreciation for for those of you who uh for your lives on the line for us so again we're very very honored honorary Sergeant Mendoza officer Pollard and Marshall Peterson each year is a strong reminder of the hundreds of officers and First Responders that risked their lives each day to keep our community safe there are not many people who are willing to step up and take this risk and I'm very grateful to those of you who are today we remember the Southwest commitment and dedication our fallen officers gave to safety and well-being of the city of Mesa and our citizens our police officers have a huge impact on this community goes beyond Public Safety we admire and are grateful every day for the courage determination and passion that bases officers [Music] I'm also grateful for this opportunity to come to company reflect on the service and sacrifice of Sergeant Mendoza officer Pollard and Marshall Peterson and all the rest of our community joins us in Remembering these officers Pollard family Mendoza family I hope I know these losses are still are very dependent with your lives love and respect and compassion and gratitude that our community feels pretty 100 families please know that they will never be forgotten we will always be proud to call them our brothers thank you for sharing those into honoring those three brave men I think this is also an opportunity for us to again express our our thanks to those of you who are active duty Mesa police officers today to you and your families thank you for the commitment that you have made to our community today thank you for the sacrifice that you make every day and I assure you we are equally committed to Mercy in your interview I hope you have a very rewarding career you are you are in our prayers as our families thank you thank you mayor Giles at this point [Music] is [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] foreign we now ask that you stand and for all Mesa officers to turn on your radios to add them nine event three for the last call [Music] this is Peterson officer Stephen Smith the men and women of the police department are forever grateful and proud of your service many residents knowing that your strength Legacy with all of us although you are found [Music] Basic Police area and it will now fly over and form three orbits one over in honor of each of our phone officers [Music] thank you foreign [Music] [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] Lord make his face [Music] for taking the time to attend this event and all of you for taking a few memorable moments to join us this concludes our service today families that are here thank you safe [Music]