Behind the Badge
Two La Habra PD detectives will join hundreds of law enforcement officers from across Southern California to honor the thousands of officers killed in the line of duty over the years in the U.S.
Detectives Craig Hentcy and Jennifer Southern joined the Southern California Chapter for the 21st annual Police Unity Tour — a three-day bicycle ride from New Jersey to Washington D.C. in May.
“We are participating in this to raise awareness for fallen officers across the country,” Hentcy said. “They paid the ultimate sacrifice and this is just one way to honor them and support the families they left behind.”
The ride will take cyclists through New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania before finishing in Washington D.C. at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, where more than 40,000 people will descend on the capitol for Police Week.
The tour was founded in 1997 as an awareness campaign and since then has raised more than $20 million for the national memorial, organizers said.
The Southern California Chapter started in 2001 with three riders but now welcomes more than 400 to the team.
Just as the team size has changed over the years, so has the way organizers have had to prepare.
Anti-police rhetoric and officers across the country being targeted because of the uniforms they wear has forced organizers to consider the potential for negative demonstrations along the route.
“Up until about three years ago, we were welcomed with open arms everywhere,” said Gil Curtis, a retired LAPD gang sergeant who leads the SoCal chapter. “I’ve had to plan for everything because we are essentially a moving law enforcement billboard. We send people out to get the pulse of the community and gauge whether there are going to be any protests.”
Besides a few rogue dissenters voicing their lack of support, the ride has never encountered any serious problems.
“We are not a political action group,” Curtis said. “We are ambassadors of peace. Riding with (officers) from all over the country is just a shared story that is really something to see.”
Hentcy added, a show of camaraderie among hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the country sends a strong, positive message to the community.
“Right now it is even more important to be united,” he said. “This is just a great group of people.”
Hentcy said he first learned of the Unity Tour last year and decided to start training so he could participate in the 2017 journey.
Southern said she was inspired to take up road cycling after losing friends to the job and seeing the impact on those who love them most.
“I know it means a lot to the families to see all the riders and see the support,” Southern said. “We ride for the fellow officers of the fallen and their families.”
Hentcy and Southern currently are in training mode, logging about 100 miles a week on their bicycles.
They’ve battled injuries and demanding work schedules to ensure they’re staying on track with their preparation and have their focus set on fundraising.
They each have to raise at least $2,000 to participate in the ride.
Money raised from the riders goes to support the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, which honors every officer killed in the line of duty in the nation.
More than 20,000 names are etched onto the 304-foot marble wall. This year, so far, another 101 names will be added.
The Police Unity Tour also has donated $5 million to the National Law Enforcement Museum, a natural extension of the memorial, expected to open in 2018.
Visit socalput.com to learn more about the memorial ride or to join the team. Donate to Hentcy’s ride HERE or Southern’s ride HERE
La Habra PD Det. Craig Hentcy, left, and Officer Jennifer Southern are planing a memorial bike ride back east.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
