Special Series

Life Behind the Badge: Remember Them

Have seen a lot of praises for our law enforcement men and women lately and that really makes me happy to see.  To give them the credit for getting the people responsible for the bombing and the shooting of a police officer is only part of what they deserve.  They deserve our utmost thanks and respect for the type of job they do.  When I hear naysayers out there in my own neighborhood bashing my husband and his brothers in blue, my heart breaks.  They are our protection against the evil of the world and to make it so that they are the enemy is crossing the line.

The snide remarks and spitting is just part of what they have to deal with on a daily basis.  The other hard part is knowing that there are people that would just rather put their head in the sand and say, “Oh, that was sad about that officer dying.  When is the next game on?”  Things like that may be said as a joke or as an off the cuff comment but when a family of a police officer hears that, it rips us to the core.  They are not just men and women that go out and take care of business.  They are also husbands, wives, sisters and brothers.  They are people who actually care a lot about our country as a whole and want to make it better by taking out the riffraff of the community, one criminal at a time.  Of course, there is no way they can rid society of this infestation but they at least feel it is their duty.

A wise man once said that when men and women go in the academy, they go in wanting to be of service to their fellow man.  They aren’t hardened by life and the nastiness that is out there.  It is when they are an officer that they are faced with this distortion of life and begin to change.  We take good men and women and throw them into the pit of society because that is what they feel is their calling.  (Clark and Tracie Paris of Pain Behind the Badge).

Let us remember that our officers are not robots living a life of no feelings.  They have a heart and a family.  Remember that the next time you feel like making a comment about them.  Their families love them more than words can express and we need to make sure we hold them up like we did right after the bombing suspect was taken into custody.  We should be celebrating them everyday!  The month of May is a great time to do this!  Take the time this month to celebrate our LEO’s.  Let them feel special, even if it is a shake of the hand, a smile and a thank you, or a good cup of coffee.  Their families will thank you.

Kristen Wallitner has been in love and married to her LEO husband for 16 years and they have 2 children, ages 8 and 5.  They do a lot of hiking and outdoor things as a family.  Kristen is also very interested in running, gardening, writing, and cooking, studying her Bible, and spending time with family.

What is Wives Behind the Badge, Inc?

With 12,000 followers on our Facebook Page, many of you are new here and may not know exactly what WBTB is.  I can give you our canned response: Wives Behind the Badge, Inc. is an all-volunteer national non-profit organization, with 501c(3) status that is dedicated providing support and resources to the law enforcement community. Read More

LIFE BEHIND THE BADGE: P.O.L.I.C.E.

Wives Behind the Badge, Inc. is proud to sponsor an amazing class for officers, spouses, and other family members. P.O.L.I.C.E. Families is a class that gives all law enforcement families, not just police officers, tools to use to incorporate family life with the LE lifestyle following an outline based on the acronym of P.O.L.I.C.E. and the motto Protect and Serve. Law enforcement of all kinds present challenges in family relationships that are unique form other occupations. Learning about each other and how to communicate with each other will strengthen the relationships (souses, parents, and friends) and offers a better chance the relationship will survive through those challenges. Read More

Getting to Know You: LaDonna Kay

Name – LaDonna Kay State – North Carolina Family – I have been married for 10 years, my husband is a Master Deputy with Wake County Sheriffs Office.  We have a beautiful 5 year old little girl named Mackenzie Layne. Interests or hobbies – I am a HUGE Pittsburgh Steelers fan….. and I do mean HUGE.  We are highly superstitious, we have to wear the same clothes, sit in the same seats, high five in a certain order… all of it!  We have a Steelers room and we have and WILL keep newbies out because they are bad luck. Read More

LIFE BEHIND THE BADGE: Heroes in the Storm

Right now I sit here in my warm house on a sunny Nevada day thinking of those that are facing the biggest storm of their lives.  Do I feel guilty that I live in a place where the worst thing that can happen here are earthquakes and forest fires while all these innocent people are in the path of great destruction and mayhem? Read More

LIFE BEHIND THE BADGE: To Be or Not to Be

When Shakespeare penned the timeless words “To, be or not to be, that is the question” he asked a multifaceted question, applicable in every aspect of life.
A much more modern writer got me thinking about these questions recently. After watching the movie “End of Watch” I walked out with the same feeling I’ve felt many times since I married my LEO. The feeling can’t be tied up with a pretty word like “love” or “happiness” but is so much more. Read More

LIFE BEHIND THE BADGE: You Find Out Who Your Friends Are

September 9th, 2012 was a Sunday. The new football season was underway, children were back to school and my grandmother, at age 89, took her last breath in a nursing home in Alabama. It wasn’t anything dramatic; no great words of wisdom were shared before she passed. It was just a quiet peaceful passing on a Sunday afternoon. Read More

Getting to Know You: Melisa Cross

Name – Melisa Cross
State – Oklahoma

Family – Husband Lloyd (Butch) Cross, 4 boys….Oh yes, I am highly outnumbered! My oldest is Matthias, the twins, Tristan and Brenden, and my youngest Jeremiah

Interests or hobbies – Our family loves Renaissance Festivals and we attend OKRF in Muskogee, OK every May. We are also Halloween fanatics and go all out decorating our yard every year, to the point of people asking how much it costs to enter the haunted house. I also cross stitch and do other crafty things. I love photography. to read and have more books than bookshelf space. I also like to do puzzles.

Talents – I sing and was offered a recording contract when I was about 12. I can’t thank my mother enough for saying no.

Occupation – For most of the year, I am a stay at home mom, however, during June through the first part of July you will find me at the Castle of Muskogee, working fireworks. Read More

Being a LEOW — Always Remember — Never Forget

As I am sitting at home today I remember (like most) where I was 11 years ago.  I was not a Law Enforcement Officer’s Wife (LEOW).  I was not near any of the sites where the tragedy hit.  I was working on a project and teaching a class regarding accounting in Lynchburg, VA.  All of a sudden everyone’s cell phones started beeping/ringing and we all were in shock.  How could something like this be happening? Read More

LIFE BEHIND THE BADGE: The Little Things

It’s the little things that matter.  Life is full of big things, good and bad.  But when you concentrate on the little things, the big things looming in our lives seem to get smaller.
My husband has been working a lot lately due to being short handed but he goes in with a wonderfully open attitude.  He might be tired.  He might be grumpy.  He might be burnt out but he does his job with the right attitude because he knows that it is the little things that count. Read More