LAPLACE —As part of a statewide day of prayer this week, the St. John the Baptist Parish’s Sheriff’s Office hosted a ceremony to pray for active law enforcement officers and remember fallen officers who gave their lives in the line of duty.

“Too often, we forget the sacrifice and commitment these brave men and women make on a daily basis in order to protect our families and uphold the peace in our communities,” Governor Bobby Jindal said in a release. “Our officers understand the real risk and responsibility that comes with this career and we are extremely grateful for their dedicated service.”

Members of the parish law enforcement and fire departments gathered with community members at 11:30 a.m. Monday on the front lawn of the Percy Herbert Building in LaPlace to pray for police officers in the parish and state.

The Rev. Neil Bernard, pastor of New Wine Christian Fellowship, told the officers present as they seek to protect the people, please know God has your back.

“As Christians, we should honor you, respect and pray for you and see you as God’s servants,” Bernard said. “I just want to say, that on behalf of the clergy, that we not only pray for you on this day, but we commit to pray for you everyday.”

Sheriff Mike Tregre expressed his sympathy for fallen law enforcement officers in Louisiana and nationwide.

“How did it ever get to this point in this country where law enforcement has a target on their back?” Tregre said. “Recently, we’ve seen attacks on law enforcement. We’ve seen our very own brothers attacked in St. John Parish. The job is not to lose your life. The job is for all of us to go home to our families each and every night.”

After hearing the speeches and seeing the crowd of people participating Monday, deputy Troy Cassioppi said he was humbled by the experience.

“We put on our uniform every day, not knowing if we’re coming home at night to our families,” Cassioppi said. “This day just shows that God has our back and so does the community. Being a police officer in this day in age, it’s nice to know the community has your back.”

The Sheriff said it was important for his officers to know the community supports them.

“The officers need to know that the community is behind them so they can go out and do their job,” Tregre said.

Before passing off the microphone, Bernard expressed how much he personally appreciated the officers.

“Thank you for laying down your lives each day for our freedom,” Bernard said. “The reason why I can go to bed and sleep at night is because we have men and women like you to uphold the law.”

At the end of the ceremony, the crowd faced Airline Highway and watched as the balloons were released into the sky. The balloons, black and blue, matched the ribbons passed out and the flags blowing in the wind.

The Sheriff explained it’s called the “thin blue line,” which shows support and shows that officers have each other’s backs.

By Raquel Derganz Baker