Six area law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty were honored at a memorial service Wednesday.

The Blooming Prairie Ministerium hosted a Police Memorial Service in honor of National Police Week at Red Oak Grove Cemetery.

Pastor Gene Leiter of Red Oak Grove Lutheran said 210 Minnesota officers have died in the line of duty. The risks of their profession, he said, “are often not thought about until there is a tragedy.”

Blooming Prairie police, fire department and ambulance squads were invited attend, as well as the Mower, Freeborn, Dodge and Steele county sheriff’s departments.

The American Legion Post 52 and VFW Post 878 posted the colors for the event, and the Blooming Prairie High School Chamber Choir sang “America the Beautiful.”

Joseph Herzog, a patrolman with the Austin Police Department, was struck by a vehicle in Austin in July 1945. Herzog, 51, served with the APD for nine years. No charges were filed.
Chief of Police Neil Johnson of the Blooming Prairie Police Department died in gunfire after responding to a domestic dispute in December 1951. Johnson, 48, had served three years with the department. The gunman was charged with first-degree murder.
Claremont Chief of Police Gregory Lange died in gunfire in July 1988 after he responded to a fight between two brothers; they were later convicted of murder. Lang, 39, had served 16 years with the department.
A part-time officer with the Grand Meadow Police Department, Jason Meyer, 28, died in a single-car accident in September 1999 when his squad car struck a utility pole by Minnesota Highway 16 onto U.S. Highway 63. He had served six months with the department.
Village Marshal Ole Havey, 40, of the Hayfield Marshal’s Office was shot and killed by burglars in December 1905.
Marshal Johnson, town marshal of the Lyle Police Department, was killed in gunfire on October 1922. He was shot by a drunken man who then committed suicide. The suspect had lost the election to be town marshal to Johnson, even though he served as assistant marshal. Johnson, 66, served two years with the LPD.

Father William Kulas of Blooming Prairie Catholic Church and Pastor Karl Korbel of First Lutheran Church also led the service. A firing squad, “Taps” and a prayer capped off the ceremony.

Blooming Prairie Officer Jacob Peterson said he has not seen such a ceremony since a service on the anniversary of Sept. 11.

“This is the first one that I’ve been at that recognizes National Police Week,” Peterson said. “It’s not one of those big crowd-pleasing things, but it’s good to be recognized.”