For more than 30 years, Bob Welsh was an Ohio State Trooper. Welsh retired at the rank of captain, but has continued to advance the goals of the law enforcement profession. Welsh has taken pride in being an inspirational speaker and storyteller. We are living in a time where the need for inspiration is great. For several years Welsh has inspired others with his poem “My Christmas Eve.” We are proud to share it with you this Christmas Eve.
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
The Gift of Service
This Christmas Eve, we thank all those officers, deputies and state troopers on patrol this very day. We are grateful for those who have retired and returned safely home to their families. We salute all those who gave the most precious gift that anyone can give.
We pray for peace in our homes and in our streets. We remain mindful: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God” (Matthew 5:9, NIV).
Merry Christmas Eve.
We are interested in your thoughts, and invite you to comment below.
Amazing. This man’s story is true of so many police officers. They impact and change the lives of people every single day. We owe them so much. God bless our police officers, military, and all first responders.
Amen.
I agree wholeheartedly with Jim’s assessment. This video can also serve as a good roll call training tool for active duty members of law enforcement. It’s often easy for officers to work on autopilot and forget the tremendous impact a single interaction can have on a citizen.
I believe this is partly due to officers dealing with what seems to be the same small crop of citizens and offenders engaging in an endless cycle of disturbances/criminal activity. In just a few years an officer can become disgruntled and start to question whether it’s worth it to bring their “A” game when it comes to citizen interactions. This video serves as a powerful reminder that one call on one shift can change the trajectory of a person’s life for the better.
Happy New Year!
Thank you for your insights. It is essential that those in leadership roles continually remind their officers that what they do matters – and that the officers are themselves “the key piece of the puzzle” that brings it all together. On this point we recommend of video on All-Levels Leadership.