POLICE ASSOCIATIONS & CHARITIES

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Listing of Police Associations & Charities of Athletic, Ethnic, Fraternal and Professional Origins.

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BAGPIPES & DRUMS OF THE EMERALD SOCIETY

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Established 1982

AddressPO BOX 56504 Chicago, IL 60656 Website: http://www.CopsInKilts.com
Biography

February of 1982 witnessed the tragic deaths of three Chicago Police Officers. Fatefully, two were lost returning from the first officer’s funeral. Police Officers from the Emerald Society of Illinois, with the assistance of then Mayor of Chicago, Jane Byrne, arranged for the presence of the Pipes & Drums of the Emerald Society – City of New York Police Department to conduct their “Inspectors Funeralâ€ù in Chicago. This impressive and fitting tribute to these “fallen men in blueâ€ù was the impetus for the formation of the Band. The Bagpipes & Drums of the Emerald Society – Chicago Police Department was subsequently formed in May of 1982 with the help of Mayor Jane Byrne and then Emerald Society President Dan Burke. Playing at the funerals of Police Officers and Firefighters killed in the line of duty was the goal. Throughout the years the Band has participated in over one hundred honor funeral services for members of the Chicago Police Department, Chicago Fire Department and numerous Suburban, County, State and Federal agencies – including Capitol Hill Police Officer Jacob J Chestnut and Special Agent John M Gibson, killed in July of 1998. In September of 2002, the band journeyed to New York’s Ground Zero to return the benevolence they offered in 1982.

Forty-four members of the Emerald Society of Illinois consisting of State, County, City of Chicago and Suburban Officers gathered to form the Band. Over the years, many members have come and gone for various reasons. However, today the band has over eighty officers in uniform with twelve original members still active in the Band. Even today members of the Band consist entirely of active and retired Law Enforcement Officers from the rank and file of Federal Agencies, State, Counties, City of Chicago and numerous Suburban Police Departments.

Besides our primary function, the band has expanded its purpose to promote the appreciation of piping music. To this end, the band performs at numerous parades throughout the year, highlighted by the St. Patrick’s Day events in the Loop and Southside. As a member of the Midwest Pipe Band Association, the band has participated successfully in various competitions through the midwest.

Several movies that show our Band in action include:

  • Backdraft
  • The Fugitive
  • The Package
  • The Negotiator
  • Stir of Echoes (Pipe Sergeant Tim Sheehan)

The Band has also performed alongside Doc Severenson, Kevin Matthews, Jay Leno, Drop Kick Murphy’s, Black 47 and Seanchai & the Unity Squad.

In September of 2007, the Band celebrated twenty-five years of service to the members of the Chicago Police Department and the surrounding law enforcement communities by hosting a Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Tattoo at the Chicago Symphony Center. Performing at the Tattoo were the Bagpipes & Drums of the Emerald Society, New York City Police Department, Police Pipes & Drums of Bergen County, Mullane Irish Dancers, Catherine O’Connell, The Larkin & Moran Brothers and of course, the Bagpipes & Drums of the Emerald Society, Chicago Police Department. Mayor Jane Byrne was in attendance as the Bands Special Guest of Honor. The Tattoo was a complete success, and the Band would like to thank everyone who contributed to the Band during the last twenty-five years.

BROTHERHOOD FOR THE FALLEN – BFF

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Established 2010

Address5830 South Sayre Avenue Chicago, IL 60638 <br /> <span class="fa fa-phone"> </span>: Primary Number – (773) 466-4235 Website: http://www.BrotherhoodForTheFallen.org
Biography

Brotherhood for the Fallen is a nationally recognized 501(c) (3) organization comprised of Chicago Police Officers that physically and financially demonstrate support to Officers that have been murdered in the line of duty, across the United States of America and Canada. Our founders created this organization after attending the services of three of the most devastating law enforcement tragedies in our nation’s recent history in 2009 and 2010. These horrific events occurred in Oakland, CA; Pittsburg, PA; and Lakewood, WA. It resulted in the murders of eleven of our Brothers and Sisters in Blue. Our members honor these true American Heroes by participating in the funeral services and providing a financial donation to the families of the fallen police officers. Our hope is that the families can use this immediate financial support to help with their day to day obligations. Their lives are forever changes by the sudden violent act that has left them without a family member that may have been their sole provider.

Through membership dues and generous community partner donations, we are able to send two Brotherhood members, in full CPD ‘dress blues’ uniforms to the locations across this great country where an officer has been murdered in the line of duty. Since our inception in March of 2010, our members have been deployed to over 160 services. As well as offering support to the families, Brotherhood for the Fallen officers support to the fallen officers Police Department and the surrounding community.

In addition to the aforementioned mission, our organization and its members have rendered to offer support in natural disasters to First Responders and victims of the affected community. As recent as 2015, Brotherhood for the Fallen members offered aid to tornado stricken Kirkland, Illinois as well as Moore, Oklahoma and Washington, Illinois in 2013.

Gold Sponsors