MERCED, Calif. (KMJ/KFSN) — Law enforcement from across the North Valley ushered into the memorial garden in Merced on Wednesday.
Sheriff’s deputies, police and California Highway Patrol officers stood shoulder to shoulder as the U.S. flag was raised.
A salute to service, honoring the local heroes who’ve lost their lives.
Sitting in the front row, Nery Henderson grasped onto her son’s hand as Captain Joey Perez with the Merced Police Department shared words about her late husband.
“Joseph loved people, he loved to camp, hike, help his father build homes, play with his son, Logan,” Captain Perez said.
Joe Henderson was a detective with Merced Police.
He died back in 2019 after a hard-fought battle with brain cancer and even during his grueling treatments, he would still put on his badge and go to work every day.
“I remember several stories in the gang unit where we serve search warrants. That guy would search every nook and cranny, be sweating from head to toe and that’s just how he was. The guy was just a worker,” Captain Perez said.
Detective Henderson’s son, Logan, was the one to unveil his dad’s stone, a permanent symbol of his sacrifice.
“He is our little miracle baby, and I know how much our husband wanted a son a child and I know that he’s left with nothing but good memories of his dad,” Nery Henderson said.
Though not blood, law enforcement has become their family.
Each name, each picture with a story, including Mark Fisher, a supervisor at the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Back in August of 2024, Fisher was in the mailroom at USP Atwater when he opened an envelope believed to be laced with fentanyl that took his life.
Officers rang a bell for every life lost on the front lines or in the line of duty.
Their legacy to live on forever.
“Let’s let the last name that is on there be the last name that is on there,” Merced County Sheriff Verne Warnke said. “That’s our stark reminder. We wake up every morning and this is what we do.”
