Concerns of Police Survivors, Inc. (C.O.P.S.), is a nonprofit organization established to provide resources to assist in the rebuilding of the lives of surviving families of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty, as determined by U.S. federal criteria. C.O.P.S. was organized in 1984 with 110 members but today includes over 15,000 families.

Unfortunately, with between 140 and 160 law enforcement officers dying in the line of duty each year, C.O.P.S.’s membership continues to grow; as a result, the organization’s programs for surviving spouses, children, parents, siblings, significant others, and affected coworkers are in greater demand than ever. C.O.P.S. programs for survivors include the National Police Survivors’ Conference, held each May during National Police Week; scholarships; peer support at the national, state, and local levels; and a counseling reimbursement program. (For more information, visit www.nationalcops.org.)

This article relates the stories of two participants of the C.O.P.S. Kids Summer Camp, one of the several programs the organization has established for children of fallen officers. Each story holds a similar message: children are not the only ones who benefit from participation.