What is Project Blue Light?

If someone you love is a law enforcement officer, you probably think often about ways to encourage them and honor their sacrifices. One of the most popular nationwide public movements designed to support the police force and remember fallen officers is Project Blue Light: a memorial that illuminates the night sky every holiday season.

What is Project Blue Light? We want to share the history and symbolism behind this gesture of goodwill and some tips for how to observe and participate.

The History of Project Blue Light

Project Blue Light began in 1989 when a woman named Dolly Craig wrote to Philadelphia’s C. O. P. S. chapter to let them know she would be placing a blue light in her window during the holiday season to honor her late son-in-law, Philadelphia Police Officer Danny Gleason.

The idea has since been shared with C. O. P. S. chapters nationwide and grows bigger each year as survivors band together and remember the loved ones they’ve lost in the line of duty. Blue lights now burn bright in nearly 32,000 windows over the holidays.

Project Blue Light in Arizona

Project Blue Light made the KTAR news in the state of Arizona in 2016 as our own C. O. P. S. leadership encouraged citizens to participate as a way to thank the Arizona police. You can read the full article here.

How to Participate in Project Blue Light

If you or someone you know lost a loved one who is a law enforcement officer, participating in Project Blue Light can be a source of comfort or a meaningful way to show your support.

It can communicate that although your loved one is no longer celebrating the holidays with you, they are still present in your home and in your heart. It also demonstrates to other police officers that you honor their fallen brethren and appreciate the gravity of their sacrifices. The holidays are a poignant and sometimes painful time period for officers and survivors who are missing partners or loved ones who have passed away.

You can find blue LED tea lights on Amazon here. You can find blue Christmas lights here. You can set them in your window when you set up the rest of your festive holiday décor. Optionally, you can also display a thin blue line flag to show further solidarity to your local police force. Check one here.

As the holiday season ends and we go into a new year, we hope you will consider remembering the police officers who paid the ultimate sacrifice to keep our communities safe. If you have any questions about Project Blue Light or you are a survivor who is searching for resources, visit our main website at the link below.

C.O. P. S. Arizona is dedicated to rebuilding shattered lives of survivors and co-workers affected by line of duty deaths. We offer programs and scholarships for survivors in our local Arizona chapter. For more information, visit https://www.copsarizona.org/.