Last month, America’s law enforcement community celebrated National Police Week. A week that sees remembrance events throughout our nation honoring fallen heroes, their families and our beloved profession. The premier National Police Week events occur in Washington, D.C., where thousands converge in the nation’s capital to attend solemn ceremonies in memory of those who died in the line of duty.

The common thread weaving through the multitude of Police Week events is the law enforcement honor guard.

Honor guards are an integral part of police departments, formally representing each in public and departmental functions. An honor guard might be presenting the colors at a promotional ceremony in the morning, standing in honor at a retired member’s wake in the afternoon and be part of an on-field ceremony at a professional sporting event that evening. The performances at events such as these are a representation of the pride, professionalism and dedication of the members of a police department.

If routine was a word used in law enforcement, honor guard members might say the majority of their jobs are routine. What can never be considered routine is the honor guard’s duties in the funeral of a fallen member of the service. The emotions and the “There for the grace of God go I” feelings run deep in each honor guard member’s heart and soul. Their solemn performance during the funeral ceremonies mirrors the sorrow of the mourners.

The sad sounds of a muffled drum accompanying a funeral cortege past thousands of mourners lining an avenue to a looming church where an honor guard retrieves the casket of a fallen hero and hoists it upon their shoulders, performing this most solemn duty with ceremonial precision. It is a scene repeated thousands of times by police honor guards in the history of American law enforcement.

The most significant date in law enforcement history, September 11, 2001, saw 72 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty while rescuing thousands from the burning, doomed towers in lower Manhattan. Never have honor guards been presented with such overwhelming loss. Yet, they carried out their duties with honor and solemn respect for the fallen.

About 30 years ago, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department (PAPD) Superintendent Fred Morrone authorized the formation of the Port Authority Police Honor Guard. Morrone was killed in the line of duty on September 11, 2001, at the World Trade Center. The PAPD Honor Guard carried him to his final resting place.

That dark day tasked the members of the PAPD Honor Guard with carrying 37 Port Authority police officers on their shoulders in celebration of their lives while mourning their loss.

Concurrent with the services for the PAPD fallen, the Honor Guard also stood in honor for Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) leadership wakes and funerals. Added to the Honor Guard’s somber PAPD and PANYNJ duties were the numerous memorials pertaining to the September 11th tragedy. Those assignments included long hours in the public eye with the families of the fallen, standing in solemn respect and honor at funeral homes, houses of worship and cemeteries.

While conducting these ceremonies, the Honor Guard was not only grieving for the losses the PAPD and PANYNJ suffered but was tasked with executing a funeral for one of their Honor Guard members, Port Authority Police Officer Paul Laszczynski (EOW: 9/11/2001), a senior Honor Guard member and a PAPD Emergency Services Unit member.

Today, Assistant Chief Geraldo Silva is the only active PAPD member who performed 9/11 funerals for the 37 fallen Port Authority cops. When asked what specific moments have stayed with him from his Honor Guard days, Chief Silva stated, “Providing second-to-none funeral and memorial services for our fallen, and more importantly, providing their families and friends with a sense of honor, pride and closure.”

Port Authority Police Detective Jason Nielsen, an eight-year Honor Guard member, has performed many funeral services for active and retired members, as well as participated in countless parades, promotional and medal ceremonies, and sporting events. Reflecting on his Honor Guard duties, Nielsen said, “Anytime we have to perform a funeral for an active or retired member, we are front and center carrying a family’s loved one to their final resting place. That moment will forever be etched in their memories. We must be flawless when we execute a funeral service.”

A dignified passage and the creation of new memories for the family of a fallen officer is a no-fail mission for an honor guard. As Nielsen stated, “We must be flawless.”