LYNN — The city’s annual flag-raising ceremony on Wednesday honored all fallen police officers, specifically highlighting Sgt. Ian Taylor of the Billerica Police Department and Waltham Police Officer Paul Tracey, for National Police Week.
The ceremony, at which the Peace Officers Memorial flag is raised, takes place each year during National Police Week. For more than 10 years, it has been held outside of City Hall.
Taylor died in April while working on a construction detail. Tracey was fatally struck by a vehicle while he was working on a construction detail in December.
The ceremony is “a way to acknowledge the significant sacrifice that our peers across the nation have made,” Chief of Police Christopher Reddy said.
He added that it is also a time to recognize the importance of the work that Lynn’s officers do each day.
“We never want to miss the opportunity to remember the support that the families and loved ones of our officers give to help them be able to do this job, and do it well,” Reddy said.
Reddy also acknowledged the city’s community for its “tremendous support” of the Police Department.
“It is important to remember that officers go about doing their work every day, and in any moment, they don’t know what type of incident they’re going to be responding to, and what they’re going to be presented with, yet they face it with courage, with compassion, and with empathy for their fellow humans,” Reddy said.
He said the city’s officers are extraordinarily committed to making sure that everyone is “treated with dignity and has access to justice.“
Mayor Jared Nicholson, speaking after the flag-raising, said he is always grateful for the service the city’s police officers provide.
“We are grateful for this opportunity to reflect on the sacrifices made by those fallen officers on this memorial occasion,” Nicholson said.
