SERVICE leADERS
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After 25 years of service, my Dad retired as a police officer. At some point in my adolescence, I began to realize what he did for a living was dangerous. And there was a greater than normal chance that when he left for work, he might not make it home.
The thing that struck me most at the vigils for Officers Ruge, Elmstrand, and Firefighter Finseth is that their families, whom I am sure have had the same realization, had their fear come to fruition that Sunday morning. For Officer Medlicott’s family, it was a very close call. When I was in Toastmasters a few years back, I wrote a speech to honor the heroism my Dad displayed throughout his career. In his first year as an officer, he was chasing a stolen vehicle. At some point during the chase, he realized the perpetrator was shooting at him. As I put it in the speech: “…he was shot at only because of the uniform he wore and the car he drove that day. Do you know what my Dad did the very next day? The same thing he did every working day for the next 25 years; he put on the same uniform and drove that same car. That my friends, defines bravery.” There is no doubt that Officers Medlicott, Ruge, Elmstrand, and Firefighter Finseth were shot because of the uniform they wore and what they were doing that day – protecting the rest Burnsville from harm. I don’t think that fact is lost on any one of our city’s first responders, yet those brave men and women are proudly wearing their uniforms every working day since. We need to ensure Burnsville’s first responders are supported with adequate staffing to get the job done. |