1.08.2012

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this is officer shawn schneider.

on december 19, 2011, he responded to a domestic call in lake city, mn. he was shot and eleven days later, on december 30, 2011, he died. yesterday, he was laid to rest.

thousands of fellow law enforcement officers went to lake city yesterday to honor his life and service.

it was a very somber experience to take part in. as many of you know, my boyfriend is an officer for the city of jordan, mn. i accompanied him, along with a group of officers who serve scott county (belle plaine, jordan, new prague, savage, prior lake, and the sheriff's office), down to lake city to participate in the funeral. 

upon arriving, a group of patriot guard riders lined the main street with american flags outside of the church. our convoy was immediately stopped as the body of officer schneider was arriving at the same time. all of the officers got out of their squad guards to salute their fellow officer. we were allowed to sit in a tent and watch the funeral going on inside the church. 

after the church service, it was time to honor officer schneider again by leading a procession to the cemetery. every squad car and ambulance in attendance turned on their lights and drove a four mile route through lake city. hundreds of citizens lined the streets as we drove by, holding american flags and signs saluting badge number 208.

once at the cemetery, all of the officers marched together and lined up near the grave site. after a final salute from the officers, officer schneider's badge was called for the end of watch. for those of you unfamiliar, all officers sign in and out during shifts using their badge numbers. this was to signal that officer schneider was signed out forever.

i was filled with a lot of different emotions yesterday. while it was an amazing spectacle to see so many law enforcement members come together, the reason for which they were doing so was unfortunate. 

it helped me realize how life can be so fleeting. you can be here one day and gone the next. so if there is something you want to do in your life, do it. as with the intent of my blog, i want to make a healthy change in my life and i plan on doing it. period.

regular posts will resume this week.

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