National Police Remembrance Day, 2023: Illawarra pauses to remember officers killed

As the sun beat down on the men and women in blue, they gathered with their families and supporters for National Police Remembrance Day on Friday, September 29.

They met outside Wollongong Police Station and then marched behind two officers on motorbikes and three flag bearers towards Wesley Uniting Church on Crown Street Mall.

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As they took their seats the choir sang in the intimate stone churching that dates back to 1882.

"You front up every day not knowing what's going to happen," NSW Police Senior Chaplain Father Paul O'Donoghue told more than 100 people who had gathered.

"There's a danger that we think it's a one-off wonder, something that happens in a few moments in time.

"You lay down your life, you give meaning to God given humanity."

The day honours police officers killed in the line of duty, during the last 12 months three Australian cops have been killed.

Constables Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow were ambushed at a rural property in Wiembilla, Queensland; and Constable Anthony Woods died after being run over while intercepting a car in Western Australia.

The honour roll read out by Inspector Darren Kelly also listed the names of 14 NSW Police force employees who have died (not in the line of duty) during the year.

During Friday's service Father O'Donoghue shared a memory of when he spoke to Sydney cop Senior Constable Karen Lowden after she was awarded the Medal of Valor Award in 2013, for her role in assisting Madeline Pulver who had been fitted with an 'explosive collar'.

"She was given the opportunity to leave, but she said 'no, I want to stay'," he said.

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"She said she thought of her family and friends not knowing what would happen if the bomb was going to explode."

Snr Const Lowden told him after the service that she didn't "know what all the fuss is about, we do this all the time".

Since the NSW Police force was created in 1862, there have been 276 officers killed on duty.

One of them was Illawarra Sergeant Allen William Nash, who was 40 years old when he was killed by a gun-wielding offender at Primbee in 1956.

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Father O'Donoghue spoke of the ultimate sacrifice these officers had made and how proud he is to serve with Illawarra's cops.

"As a member of the community we need to look and see how we can support our police officers," he said.

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