Behind the Badge
White roses encircled the base of the statue the Tustin Police Department has built in memory of the agency’s only fallen officer.
Waldron G. Karp’s sacrifice is not forgotten. And his service lives on.
On Wednesday, May 10, more than 150 people attended the annual Wally Karp Memorial Ceremony, honoring the only Tustin PD officer killed in the line of duty. The annual gathering is a continuing tribute Tustin officers pay to his memory.
Tustin Police Chief Charles Celano has said his mission is to keep retelling Officer Karp’s story, so that current officers will never forget what it means. On May 10, he took up the mission again.
Sher Karp, daughter of Officer Wally Karp, and grandson Jacob Karp, both Tustin residents, lay roses at the base of a memorial for Officer Karp during an annual memorial ceremony for the only Tustin police officer to be killed in the line of duty.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
“He was only 31 years old when he was murdered, but of those 31 years, he spent over one third in service of his country and of his community,” Celano told attendees.
Celano explained not just how Karp died (he was shot), but how he lived, and that becoming a police officer was Karp’s “dream job” after returning from the Navy during the Vietnam War.
The police chief also reminded the gathering that although Tustin police officers have been very fortunate since Karp’s passing, the full weight of their responsibility in protecting the public is always there.
Kayleigh Sargent gives her 2-year-old son, Jameson Newton, a kiss as he looks at a white rose at the start of the ceremony. Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
“Each of us took an oath,” Celano said. “And every officer who puts on a badge knows that someday the time may come when they too may be asked to make the ultimate sacrifice and their name may be added to this memorial.”
Since Celano created the event in 2013, the annual ceremony brings together both current and retired Tustin PD employees, City of Tustin staff and members of the community. Perhaps most poignantly, Karp’s daughter, Sher, and grandson, Jacob, attend the event each year to lay the first roses.
Tustin PD Officer Robert Nelson, right, leads a line of officers making their entrance at the start of the ceremony for Officer Wally Karp.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Sher, who was just 10 years old when her father died, is still moved by the annual tribute.
“The big thing is, they didn’t forget,” she said. “I’m glad they take the time to remember.”
During the ceremony, the Tustin Police Officers Association also awards the Wally Karp Memorial Scholarship to a local high school student in memory of Officer Karp.
Tustin PD Explorer Abigail Campos hands white roses to each person attending the ceremony for Tustin PD Officer Wally Karp at the Tustin Police Department.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Jacob, himself a former recipient of the scholarship and currently working on his doctorate degree in cancer research at Marshall B. Ketchum University in Fullerton, acknowledged the responsibility he feels to live up to a legacy of a man he never met.
“I want to make a difference in the world like he did,” Jacob said. “If I can leave half the legacy he did, I’ll be happy.”
A special guest at this year’s memorial was Howard Landau, who served with Karp in Vietnam.
Members of the Tustin PD Color Guard, including Sgt. Sara Fetterling, right, post the colors during the Tustin PD’s annual memorial ceremony for Officer Wally Karp.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
“Though I’d rather have him here, the honor is so huge, it’s hard for me to find the words,” said Landau, who recently formed a friendship with Karp’s family.
And he needs no prompting in telling people about the hero he knew.
“He saved more people than you’d believe,” Landau said. “Men came home because of him.”
Dawn Wright sings the National Anthem during a Tustin PD memorial ceremony for Officer Wally Karp.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Members of the Tustin Police Honor Guard conduct a 21-gun salute to Tustin PD Officer Wally Karp, the only Tustin Police officer to be killed in the line of duty, during an annual memorial service at the police department May 10.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Standing during the playing of “Taps” are, from left, Tustin Police Chaplain Dane Counts, Orange County Fire Authority Battalion Chief Andy Kovacs, Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens, Tustin Police Chief Charles Celano and TPD Lt. John Strain.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
A Tustin PD Explorer hands out a white rose to a guest attending the ceremony.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Tustin PD Explorers line up at the start of the ceremony.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Tustin Police Chief Charles Celano talks about how TPD Officer Wally Karp died in the line of duty and what his sacrifice means to the department.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
With honor guards standing their post on each side of a memorial honoring Officer Wally Karp, the only Tustin PD officer to be killed in the line of duty, Tustin Police Officer Charles Celano talks about the officer during a memorial services in his honor.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Ralph Bates of the Orange County Fire Authority Pipes and Drums plays “Amazing Grace.”
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Tustin Police personnel gather for an annual memorial ceremony for Tustin PD Officer Wally Karp at the Tustin Police Department.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Tustin Mayor Dr. Allan Bernstein addresses attendees.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Tustin Police Chief Charles Celano, center, with members of the Tustin PD Honor Guard at the conclusion of the ceremony for Tustin PD Officer Wally Karp.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
