While most of Dallas County Sheriff Chad Leonard’s attention is consumed by construction of the new law enforcement center, he’s also been able to look a bit behind it at the adjacent Raccoon River Valley Trail.
Leonard tells Raccoon Valley Radio that at some point during the planning process for the facility, he had an idea for a tribute to fallen Dallas County officers. Before he knew it, the “Thin Blue Line” was born. The concept for the project is to turn the 1,340 feet of bike trail running behind the center into a memorial. Leonard says he let a few people know about his idea, and as word spread more and more people wanted to get involved. There’s even a group from out of state that has reached out to him wanting to handle much of the planning and fundraising. Leonard also received the blessing of the Dallas County Conservation Board, which is important since they’re the owners of the trail.
He emphasizes that the project is in the very early stages of development, but he’s excited to see so much enthusiasm already, and he has a concept for what it will look like. “The vision would be kind of an archway on both ends of the County properties, so you know that you’re entering the ‘Thin Blue Line’ from either direction. And obviously this wouldn’t be County-funded or anything, this would be raising funds and (going) out there marketing it and trying to get people to contribute and stuff like that. So (I) think it’s going to be a great addition; it’ll be a landmark for that bike trail and I think a lot of people will come visit it.”
More than anything, Leonard wants the “Thin Blue Line” to be a sort of history lesson for people, so the memories of all the public servants who lost their lives in the line of duty won’t be forgotten. Fundraising for the project is currently going on, but work on it won’t likely begin until after the new law enforcement center is finished. Leonard encourages anyone interested in donating to the “Thin Blue Line” to call the Sheriff’s Office for more information.
To hear more from Leonard, listen to Wednesday’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.