Honoring the Fallen: Police Week Reflects on Sacrifice, Stress, and Service
Woodway, TX (FOX 44) — National Police Week serves as a time to reflect on the bravery of those who protect our community and have made the ultimate sacrifice.
Police Week also highlights the challenges officers face like a 57-year life expectancy due to stress, says Woodway Public Safety Department Chief Khalil El Halabi.
'The average officer has their first heart attack at 49 years old,' El Halabi said. 'Where 45 percent of our heart attacks occur under the age of 45. I believe 147 deaths occurred, fatalities, last year. Which is a 25 percent increase from the year before, from 2023.'
Khalil has been in law enforcement for 17 years, and has lost a good friend in the line of duty.
'Chief Allen was a friend of mine,' El Halabi said. 'He was the Marlin Chief, and he passed away over a decade ago. That one was difficult. He was an honorable man and he was feloniously killed.'
Even school police departments celebrate National Police Week – like Jeffrey Foley, the Midway Independent School District Chief of Police.
'Remembering officers who have put every single thing that they have on the line and ultimately didn't make it home,' Foley said. 'So remembering why we're here and what we're doing to protect our communities, I think it's important. It's critical to kind of keep us going.'
Foley had once worked with one of the five DART officers killed in Dallas.
'That one hit me pretty good because it's getting closer to home, and it was people that I knew,' Foley expressed. 'So it hits you and it makes you realize and re-evaluate how you do your job every day, and what steps you need to take to protect yourself.'
The legacy of the fallen lives on in the communities they safeguarded, and in the hearts of those they loved.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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