Community Corner
PHOTOS: Kirkwood Honors Fallen Heroes
At the Memorial Day service Monday morning in Kirkwood, the guest speaker made a call to remember three Kirkwood police officers who lost their lives tragically in years past.
Approximately 100 people turned out to the Memorial Day service held at 10 a.m. Monday in the Veterans' Memorial Walkway next to the Kirkwood City Hall.
Mayor Art McDonnell said this was the best-attended Memorial-Day service event he had seen in years. The event was hosted by the Kirkwood American Legion Post 156.
“It’s great to see so many people turn out this year,” McDonnell said. “The American Legion here has been doing a great job over the years in increasing attendance.”
But Bill Burckhalter, Commander of the Kirkwood American Legion Post, said he wished more Americans realized the value of Memorial Day.
“Memorial day has become America’s three-day weekend,” Burckhalter said. “How do we keep it from fading away? With people like you who come to these events.”
Capt. Gary Woepke, who recently retired as assistant chief of police for the city of Glendale, was the guest speaker of the ceremony.
Woepke said that, because of an injury, he only served for two years as a military clerk in the ‘60s. However, Woepke, who served for over 30 years in Glendale’s police, said he had a special place in his heart for all the men and women who sacrificed their lives for the United States.
Woepke said he also thought men and women in the police forces should be honored on this day. He pointed out specifically to Tom Ballman and William Biggs, the two officers who lost their lives in the Feb. 7, 2008 shooting at Kirkwood City Hall, and to Sgt. Bill McEntee, who was shot in July of 2005.
“It’s a day in which I’m always going to remember them because they made the ultimate sacrifice,” Woepke said.