Behind the Badge Foundation
After the Memorial was completed, ‘Behind the Badge Foundation’ was created to manage all ongoing operations, including fundraising, site maintenance, and the careful administration of the Inclusion process.
History of Behind the Badge Foundation
Learn more about Behind the Badge Foundation’s history, including the origins of the Washington State Law Enforcement Memorial and the work we’ve done since it was established.
The Origins
The idea for a Washington State law enforcement memorial originated in 1995 when a group of surviving family members and law enforcement officers visited the ‘National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial’ in Washington, D.C.
At the time, 35 states already had memorials honoring officers who made the ultimate sacrifice. But no such monument existed in Washington or had ever been proposed here. The group believed it was essential to honor Washington’s fallen officers with a memorial that was accessible.
Raising Money
Sgt. Frank Kampsen assembled an exploratory committee to determine the cost and resources required to erect a state memorial located on the grounds of the state capitol in Olympia.
Thus began an almost ten-year journey of establishing the nonprofit (then known as The Washington State Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation), fundraising, planning, designing, permitting, and working with the state to designate an official location.
Building the Memorial
Having obtained a scenic overlook of Olympia’s Capitol Lake, construction began in 2005, stabilizing the site, building a retaining wall, landscaping the hillside immediately below, and constructing a walkway that enabled pedestrians to access the site.
The solid granite memorial was delivered to the location with the state’s known 235 line-of-duty deaths dating back to 1854 already engraved. The Memorial was dedicated to the citizens of Washington state in May of 2006 and turned over as a gift to the state later that year.
Acknowledgements
Some five thousand grass-roots, corporate, and state donors came together to donate money and in-kind resources that were critical to the wall’s development
Strong financial support by:
Bruce R. McCaw
Apex Foundation
PEMCO
Puyallup Tribe of Indians
Jeff & Korynne Wright
Charles Simonyi Fund for Arts & Sciences
Harold LeMay Enterprises
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Expansion
Our role has grown significantly over the following twenty years. We are now Washington state’s largest after-event resource provider for survivors, colleagues, and agencies.
