To the editor:

Friday, Jan. 9, is National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day. The Lawrence Police Foundation, Lawrence/Douglas County Valor and Ride4COPS invite you to join us in a show of support and appreciation for the fine men and women who protect and serve our community.

In 2014, there were 118 line-of -duty deaths in the United States. These men and women have difficult jobs and face dangerous situations every shift. Nothing they do can ever be considered routine.

Common courtesy is to thank those that serve us. Every day we thank our bank teller, our grocery store checker, the person at the drive-thru window, the cleaners, wait staff at a restaurant, etc. Everyone who serves us we thank. But what about those who serve us around the clock? The ones who provide a service we don’t really see or touch and hopefully will never need, but who are always there, the people who protect our property, our businesses, our families, our lives.

This is our opportunity to take a moment to thank our Lawrence police, Douglas

County Sheriff’s officers, KU police and Kansas Highway Patrol. These men and women protect and serve our community 24/7 and we need to show them our support and appreciation.

Please join us this week and show your appreciation by sending a thank you card, wearing blue on Friday, changing your porch light to blue or, if you see an officer on the street, simply remembering to say “thank you.”