 I'm going to fire it up and we'll get going. This is what we call engraving, actually making a complete marker. It's done with sandblasting. I have about 120 pounds PSI, mixes with the sand. I got to load up some more sand here. I consider it an honor to do this. It's a shame I have to do it. Willie Steem, he was the first African-American Denver police officer to fall. Willie's kind of an enigma in his early part of his life. We do know that he was born in Topeka, Kansas, son of former slaves and near as we can tell he was about medium height, stocky, muscular build. The earliest accounts we have of Willie Steem as a police officer is serving in 1900. In Willie's case, he wasn't allowed to work in the white part of town. He was predominantly in the black part of town. He was greatly handicapped as it relates to what he could do and what he couldn't do as a police officer. His opportunities to advance were absolutely nonexistent. He was a person with a big heart that wanted to help people and help his people in particular but to help everyone. For a black officer in that time period, they would have faced some out and out racial hostilities. All of us are victims of our environment. I think it was something that they accepted because that was the way it was but that's not the way it should have been. It's a testament to their fortitude, their abilities and their character that they hung on and they persevered. I'm just another human being who cares about other people, wants to protect people and I'm here to do my job. And he obviously did his job and paid the ultimate price for doing his job. Officer Steem was killed February 18, 1921. He was taking a break in one of the clubs, it was a lower level of the establishment. The suspect, Kyle O'Neill, came down the stairs from behind and had an accomplice. He grasped Officer Steem in kind of a bear hug from behind and pinned his arms to his side. They removed Officer Steem's handgun and Kyle O'Neill said, Steamboat I've got you now. O'Neill shot him diagonally across through the chest and then as he was falling, shot him point blank in the head. As a patrolman for that district down there, Officer Steem would have been responsible for following up on issues with excise and license, general larceny, crimes, that sort of thing. And he had shut down illegal dance the week before. O'Neill had been denied his permit through the city. He apparently held this grudge against Steam for that, claiming that it cost him a pretty fair amount of money. This was clearly out and out of revenge killing. Not as for the moment, it wasn't an interrupted crime. This was something that was planned out, obviously with O'Neill having an accomplice in place to help him with this execution. The immediate turnout from the department was significant with everyone looking for the killer, where they eventually found in a boarding house and had to kick down the door to get him out. The uniqueness of that in that time period was the brotherhood, sisterhood of policing. In the end, the color of his skin wasn't relevant, it was the color of his uniform. Unfortunately, Steam was not a full-time officer and at those times was destitute. The pay wasn't that great so his wife Lucinda was left without pretty much anything. The city did step up and they did pay for his funeral, $125 which was about a month's salary at that time. As we were going through and researching his background, we went out to Riverside Cemetery. It was clear there was no headstone. There's speculation that he would have been given a sandstone grave marker. Sandstone being a readily available material and a low-cost material. Throughout the course of time, those sandstone markers, a lot of them have actually disintegrated or disappeared. Every officer who died in the line of duty needed to be recognized with at least that. Those individuals who lost their life in the line of duty, they epitomize what service above self is and we have an absolute responsibility as a police department and as a community to never forget those individuals. All of these people contributed to the history of how this part of the city and how Colorado was built. Denver didn't just become the city that it is by accident. There are people like Willie Steem and many of his comrades to be willing to stand up and make sure that everyone felt safe. A lot of these officers have been lost to history. Officer Steem had no descendants. He left behind a wife and no children. So it's incumbent upon the department to become their family as the police brotherhood and sisterhood that we are. We talk a lot about family and it's truly unfortunate that a member of our family would be forgotten for this period of time. We can now look at something and say welcome back Willie you're back in the family again. No more to be forgotten or left out here by yourself. Between 1900 and 1925 we see the most challenging racial environment in the United States since slavery. This son of slaves made it to the police department. Because of his service to the people of Denver our lives are more beautiful and complete even today 97 years later. Officer Steem's headstone is a testament to the admiration that we have for those who embody the best of humanity and he will not be forgotten. We will always honor those who gave the last full measure of devotion to our great city. To Willie Osteem, thank you for your service to the great city of Denver, Colorado.