FLORENCE, SC (WBTW) – Those who served with fallen Florence airport Officer Jackson Winkeler now have a special reminder of his sacrifice.

A nonprofit group called Point 27 sent gifts of Thin Blue Line scripture-inscribed dog tags called Shields of Strength to the Florence Regional Airport Department of Public Safety to honor Officer Winkeler, who was shot and killed in the line of duty January 5.

“We want them to know we appreciate and value them,” said US (Ret.) Army Col. David Dodd, director for Point 27. Dodd commanded a battalion of the first troops deployed to Afghanistan following 911.  He wore a Shield of Strength inscribed with Joshua 1:9 next to his government-issued dog tags, and he equipped each of the soldiers in his command with a Joshua 1:9 dog tag before they deployed. 

The Thin Blue Line dog tags are engraved with Matthew 5:9 – “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Point 27 also sent keepsake gifts of scripture-inscribed Folded Flag Pendant Necklaces for family members of the fallen officer, engraved with John 15:13 – “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

“For the families of the fallen officers, we pray the scripture on the Folded Flag Pendant Necklaces reminds them that we will never forget their loved ones,” Dodd said.

Dodd says he hopes the scripture on the Thin Blue Line Shields of Strength encourages law enforcement officers who are making and have made a tremendous sacrifice for their communities.

“We are forever grateful for these brave men and women in law enforcement,” Dodd said.

 With the help of a growing number of outreach coordinators in states across the country, Point 27 has honored every fallen law enforcement officer (line-of-duty deaths) reported in the past two years, their agencies and their families with gifts of Shields of Strength, and plans to continue that practice in 2020, ultimately equipping every law enforcement officer in the country with a gift of the Thin Blue Line Shield of Strength.

 For more about Dodd, connect with  http://www.profnetconnect.com/daviddodd

For more about Point 27, see https://point27.org/