Roadside mourners weren’t concerned about knowing Kendall County Deputy Carlos Ramirez directly. They took his death personally.
“It just tears at your heart,” Barbara Zoeller said.
She and her husband, C.D., sat in their SUV more than an hour before a procession of law enforcement was scheduled to leave for Ramirez's funeral.
“We appreciate what they do,” she said. “And, it’s for the families I suppose. His blood families and his blue family.”
Ramirez, 32, was killed in the line of duty during a traffic stop on I-10 near Boerne when a motorist hit him and his partner on July 2.
On Thursday morning, law enforcement from across the state lined the parking lot of Comfort High School before his funeral. San Antonio Police Sgt. Steven Markgraf was at the front of the line.
“We’ve gone all over Texas," he said. “We’ve gone to Dallas-Fort Worth area several times, Houston and surrounding areas.”
Markgraf’s motorcycle was heading up the procession of law enforcement. In his 29 years on the force, he said he has participated in more officer processions than he could count.
In fact, before officers started covering their badges with black elastic bands in memorial of officers, he remembered using black tape for the same purpose. Markgraf used to put the tape strips on his police locker as a grim reminder of the risks of being a policeman.
“It really hits home,” he said.
The procession left Comfort High School on Hwy 87 en route to Oak Hills Church. Zoeller and her husband were among the small crowd in the church parking lot. They were the first to pay their respects to the procession of officers.
“When you see the citizens line the streets, overpasses and saluting,” Mackgraf said. “You know cars (are) pulling over and putting their hands over their hearts. It’s very humbling.”
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