SAVANNAH, Ga. () — Savannah and Chatham County law enforcement agencies gathered downtown Wednesday morning to remember and pay tribute to the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.

The annual ceremony was held at the Police Memorial on the corner of Oglethorpe Avenue and Habersham Street. The statue is a promise to never forget the men and women who gave their all serving this community.

“There are very few professions where those involved in the profession get up, and they go to work every day knowing full well that they may not return home,” Mayor Van Johnson said. “There are still brave souls in our community, among us, who get up every day, kiss their wife, husband, boyfriend, girlfriend, children and say, ‘I’ll see you later.’ But they’re not absolutely sure they will return home.”

Johnson knows what it’s like to put the badge and uniform on, since he’s a former Chatham County Police Officer.

“When we think about that, we have to keep in mind that all gave some. Some gave all,” Johnson said.

Sixty roses were placed at the foot of the memorial. Each for a fallen officer, deputy, or trooper killed while protecting our community. Their names forever carved in the stone. Loved ones of the law enforcement officers were invited to be a part of the ceremony.

Terry Williams of Savannah lost her husband, Savannah Police Officer William S. Howard, in 1980.

“My oldest son was 3-years old, and I was 9-months pregnant with our second child when I got the knock on the door that he had been killed in a head on collision,” Williams said. “I feel sadness for my children, thinking about them growing up without their father and having that baby and going home without a dad for that baby.”

Each family’s story was special and heartbreaking. The blue brotherhood is a family in itself – there for each other in times of sorrow.

“I noticed [Richard Allen Hall] did not have representation here. But as the sheriff, I felt honored to stand in again and to represent him and his family today,” Chatham County Sheriff Richard Coleman said. “It’s a serious duty. It’s a duty that we don’t take lightly. It’s also an honor to protect and serve individuals. Those individuals who have laid it all on the line for safety – we honor them.”