Donation supports first-ever national museum in Washington, DC, dedicated to the history and significance of law enforcement in America
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund has announced that the Iron Warriors Motorcycle Club (IWMC), an international club of law enforcement motorcycle enthusiasts, has generously donated $20,000 in support of the National Law Enforcement Museum. The money was raised by chapters of the IWMC across the United States and was presented to the Memorial Fund by Mike Pascoe and Ian Ale during this year’s National Police Week observance in Washington, DC.
The IWMC donation will fund a commemorative bench within the Museum in honor of Los Angeles County (CA) Deputy Sheriff Hagop “Jake” Kuredjian. The 17-year veteran was shot and killed August 31, 2001, after responding to back up other law enforcement officers who were serving a warrant on a man for impersonating a police officer and possessing a firearm. Deputy Kuredjian’s name will be permanently inscribed on the bench, which will rest along the wall that divides the main concourse from the exhibition galleries within the Museum. In addition, the IWMC’s name will be inscribed on the Museum’s Thin Blue Line, the beautiful glass bridge connecting the east and west mezzanine levels overlooking the main concourse. It symbolizes law enforcement’s protective role in society.
“For 100 years now, motorcycle officers have served and protected our communities with honor and distinction, and some 1,200 of them have made the ultimate sacrifice so that the rest of us can live in safety,” said NLEOMF Chairman and CEO Craig W. Floyd. “We are grateful that the Iron Warriors Motorcycle Club has chosen to honor these brave protectors with this generous donation to the National Law Enforcement Museum.”
Authorized by Congress in the year 2000, the planned National Law Enforcement Museum is a 95,000 square foot, mostly underground museum that will be located just blocks from the U.S. Capitol and adjacent to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. When it opens in 2011, the Museum will provide an estimated 600,000 visitors a year with a unique and comprehensive look at the law enforcement profession. The Museum will feature high-tech, interactive exhibitions, interesting historical and contemporary artifacts, and extensive educational programming.
The privately funded Museum has launched an $80 million capital campaign, with more than $35 million raised to date. Former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton serve as co-chairs of the National Honorary Campaign Committee. For more information about the Museum, including a virtual tour, visit www.LawEnforcementMuseum.org.
About the NLEOMF
Founded in 1984, the non-profit National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund works to increase public support for law enforcement by permanently recording and appropriately commemorating the service and sacrifice of law enforcement officers, and to provide information that promotes law enforcement safety. In 1991, the NLEOMF dedicated the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, on which the names of more than 18,000 officers who have died in the line of duty throughout U.S. history are engraved. The NLEOMF is now leading the effort to build the first-ever National Law Enforcement Museum. For more information, visit www.nleomf.org.
About the Iron Warriors Motorcycle Club
The Iron Warriors Motorcycle Club was reorganized in February 2001 from the original Wild Pigs Motorcycle Club, which was founded in 1987 as an independent non-profit organization. The IWMC was established to provide for increased camaraderie among current and retired law enforcement officers and firefighters and to assist fallen members and their families. IWMC and its chapter events are intended to promote safe activities that will appeal to the membership as a whole.