March 7, 2008
Fallen CBP Officers Honored at
NTEU Candlelight Vigil
Nearly 200 members, many of whom are Customs and
Border Protection employees, stood with glowing candles
under a somber, rainy sky in Washington, D.C., Tuesday
night to pay tribute to CBP Officers who have given
their lives in the line of duty.
The
gathering, NTEU's annual Vigil of Lights, was held
at the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and
featured remarks from President Colleen M. Kelley,
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Rep.
Chris Carney (D-Pa.) and CBP Commissioner W. Ralph
Basham.
“Every day, front-line CBP Officers take up
arms to protect this nation, and this evening we salute
them and pay homage to those officers who have died
in the line of duty,” said President Kelley,
asking all those in attendance to join her “in
solemn gratitude for those who have given their lives,
and those that protect us every day.”
Secretary Chertoff acknowledged “those who
gave their lives in the service of their country,”
calling it “a supreme sacrifice,” while
Rep. Carney said he was both “honored”
and “humbled” to pay tribute.
“The
CBP agents and officers are America’s frontline,”
said Commissioner Basham. “They know the responsibility
they have and they are dedicated to it.”
The low granite walls of the memorial bare the engraved
names of some 18,000 law enforcement officers who
have died in service to the nation going back to the
establishment of the then-Customs Service nearly 220
years ago. President Kelley acknowledged one of the
newest names to be added to the wall, that of Border
Patrol Agent Luis Aguilar, who died just six weeks
ago while protecting the border.
The candlelight vigil is part of NTEU's annual Legislative
Conference, a three-day event to raise awareness of
union's legislative agenda, which this year includes
a range of issues impacting DHS employees. NTEU CBP
members were in the nation's capital meeting with
members of Congress about the “One Face at the
Border” program, understaffing at ports of entry,
DHS personnel regulations and collective bargaining
rights for all DHS employees.
For more about the vigil, click
here or visit <www.cbpunion.org/PressRelease/Press
Release.aspx?ID=1228>.
Read
about NTEU's Vigil of Lights in The Washington
Post.
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