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Still Standing
etired officers keep on doing their dt at Police Week
n BY MITCHELL KRUGEL
n PHOTOS BY AMBER RAMUNDO AND KATHLEEN SCANLAN
The women and men wearing makeshift uniforms of retired Chicago Police Officers massed at the U.S. Capitol for the Na- tional Peace Officers Memorial to continue a remarkable pres- ence that they have brought to National Police Week for the past seven years. As survivors of fallen officers moved toward the cordon created for the march to the Capitol’s front lawn, the CPD retirees and Lodge 7 members took up the position that first wowed the U.S. Capitol Police in 2012.
Back then, Chicago was on the verge of having almost no presence at Police Week. Normally, up to 500 officers annually made the trek to Washington D.C., but in 2012 the City hosted the NATO Summit during Police Week, so the Department can- celled all days off, time due and furloughs.
To ensure Chicago maintained its place on the line, Al Piant- kowski and Dan Duggan – friends and colleagues since their days working together in 018 – spread the word to retired offi- cers to get their butts to D.C. Like the cavalry, 85 retired officers came to Police Week and started a tradition that has made an impact all the way to Los Angeles.
“It speaks to the dedication Chicago coppers have always had over the years and what the memorial means to them to never forget,” praised Dugan, who started his career in the 4th District and went on to serve for 28 years. “It’s the same as when we were working. Virtually all of those 85 officers at one point during their careers had come here to see the solemn ceremo- ny. You don’t forget that. You don’t forget the families.”
The first year included some officers who had just retired and some who retired as many as 10 years earlier. They had been to the National Peace Officers Memorial, the Candlelight Vigil when names of fallen officers are also read, and other Police Week events. Some were part of a contingent that reached 500 officers the year following 9/11, the largest representation from any department in the U.S. Of those officers, 99 percent came on their days off and paid their own way.
So coming on their own time and own dime was nothing new for these retired members. They even had shirts made with a retired Chicago Police Officers star on the front and the city flag and a special message on the left sleeve. These have become the uniforms they wear each year to the memorial.
Piantkowski, who served 40 years, explained that the moti- vation for the retired members to march on Washington came from “paying it forward. That’s basically what it’s all about: be- ing part of the thin blue line.”
Dugan noted the impact their presence made that first year.
“Before the Capitol Police Honor Guard stepped in with the families, they’re looking at us and saying, ‘What happened to you guys? You used to have hundreds here,’” Dugan added. “We told them the NATO story, and they said, ‘Wow.’ That’s a com- pliment to Chicago.”
42 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ JUNE 2018
A group of retired officers from Chicago come to Police Week each year as part of a tradition that began in 2012.
Each year, Chicago’s retired officers present specially made challenge coins to police departments that have lost officers in the line of duty the previous year.
Not only have Chicago’s retired officers been in this for the long haul, but they have stayed with it until the very end. The National Peace Officers Memorial is the culminating event of Police Week, and many times attending officers have to depart for home even before it concludes.
Seeing this, Piantkowski noticed that sometimes there weren’t enough officers to form the cordon for family members to exit through. So his group decided to stand on the line, so every family member could depart with a proper salute. Such action caught the eyes of officers from the Los Angeles Police Department.
“One of their guys came across to us and said, ‘Chicago, you are a class act. We appreciate what you do, and we want to join you at the conclusion,’” Piantkowski revealed.