December 11, 2025 • 8 mins
The Louisville Metro Police Foundation executive director Rebecca Grignon Reker, whose police officer husband was killed on duty, discusses the mission and value of this critical support system for local law enforcement officers.
Rebecca has since remarried and continues the foundation's work to bolster the emotional and financial health of law enforcement officers and family members.
There's a terrific fundraising raffle underway now to boost the OFFICER IN DISTRESS FUND. Details are at lmpf.org
Rebecca has since remarried and continues the foundation's work to bolster the emotional and financial health of law enforcement officers and family members.
There's a terrific fundraising raffle underway now to boost the OFFICER IN DISTRESS FUND. Details are at lmpf.org
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
So good.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
You're everywhere to support the Louisville Metro Police Foundation, and
a lot of folks in our community know what that
is and know the support system that it is, the
safety net it is for our law enforcement officers, and
we need to have certain things going on to keep
(00:22):
raising funds because tell folks how the funds are spent
to help our police.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Well, the funds we're raising right now. It's our twentieth year,
so we have been around since two thousand and five
supporting our officers and we are raising for our Officer
in Distress fund. So what that fund does is it
comes alongside officers and members of their immediate family when
they stuffer a catastrophic event or injury, and it allows
us to take some of the financial weight off their
shoulders so that they can focus on healing and be
(00:51):
at their very best as they serve in our community.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
We just lost another officer recently.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
We did. Lieutenant Nick Deess passed away after about of
cancer and he was an absolutely amazing guy. But we
were able to show up in a big way thanks
to the community, thanks to people like you that support
and step up and make sure our officers do not
walk along we were able to walk with his wife,
Amanda and their young son Nate.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Good for you, and I saw Nick Wilt's name on
your website there too. People love him obviously an officer
who was shot in the bank shooting a couple of years.
Oh my gosh, he's been terrific. But obviously the foundation
helps support in ways that others can't. And so it's
so good what you do. So I know you have
(01:38):
a raffle that's coming up to win this twenty twenty
five Lincoln Nautilus, and or you can take forty in cash.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
Yeah, yeah, So if you don't need a car, I
mean take the forty. I would love the forty in cash,
but I can't play.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
You probably got a police officer to drive you home
or drive you to the bank or ere. We're gonna
take the forty. Yeah, we get a right to that
for sure.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Lights and sirens if you prefer. But it's a good
way to help support the Officer in Distress fund. And
the odds are really good. Right now, we've sold under
six hundred tickets. We've got twenty twenty five to sell.
So you can make it as a holiday gift, a
stocking stuffer, it prints out a really nice ticket you
just buy online and.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Oh that's a great idea. Yeah, yeah, go online to
lmp F Louisville Metro Police Foundation. That's the letters LMPF
dot org and you can find it right at the top.
It says Officer in distress raffle and you are You're remarried,
but you're a widow of a police officer, and so
(02:40):
you've you've learned how the brotherhood and sisterhood of police
can surround and sustain family members.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
They are a family. That is something that was really
important to my first husband, Peter. It is one of
the reasons that he went into law enforcement, obviously to
serve the community, but just seeing how they take care
of each other and the good time that they have
while they're serving and while they're seeing things that we
don't have to see because they're out on the street.
And I just feel really blessed to be able to
(03:10):
work to support these heroes that are quietly doing so
many good things. I mean, they're taking money out of
their own pockets to take care of people in need
on the street. And it's nice to be able to
work for an organization that allows the community to come
forull circle and get back to them.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
And you've known you for years, and you know you've
walked a path in life, and good for you where
you are today and how you put your heart and
soul into this.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
I feel like it's part of Peter's legacy. This foundation
was created by an amazing board of directors, but I
feel like I am also responsible for carrying on Peter's name,
and I feel like he continues to bless his brothers
and sisters in blue, and they continue to include me
as their little sister or now with the years that
have passed, their mother figures.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Don't say that.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
I swear some of these people coming out of the
academy could be my children. But they're amazing people, just amazing.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Occasionally you see some of these new officers and you think,
wait a minute, are you in a high school play?
Is that what that is? At uniform?
Speaker 1 (04:12):
All that good keeps you young, terry, keeps you looking good.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
That's great. But there are various events that help the
Louisville Metro Police Foundation. I know because of my friend
Steve Bass. He works hard on me. That fitness center.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
The wellness center, the wellness center, we are actually entertaining
some people, Well, entertaining sounds bad. We're teaching some people
from Jacksonville with a partnership we have with the international
Chiefs of Police, and they're coming in and we're trying
to get this stood up all over the United States.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Right. Steve told me there have been a bunch of
people coming through from police departments really everywhere. Yeah, who
want to see this wellness center?
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Yeah? And Steve's our chair now, so he's been an
integral part of getting all this off the ground. And
his enthusiasm and his zest for support is just it's contagious.
I love it.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
But give people an idea what the Wellness Center does
for office.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
So the Wellness Center supports officers supporting the five pillars
of wellness, so it's physical, mental, spiritual, social, and financial.
So a well officer is going to interact well with
the community. So when they are equipped, they are trained
there at their very best, then they could be at
their very best to serve our community. So it has
been a win win for the community and for the
(05:23):
officers because that is there, it's all in one place.
It's holistic, it's separate from the police department, so they
can just go there. And we actually just did a
holiday lunch and it was very well attended. Texas Roadhouse
are huge partners and they came out and it's just
it's been really amazing.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
And it being separate from the police headquarters, which obviously
just shifted to, gives them a place off campus essentially,
so you're not at work. Yeah, because when you're working
out at work, you're trying to eat better at work.
Whatever these things are, it's a different thing because all
you're thinking is I got to get back.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
To work exactly. It gets you out of the building.
It gets you over to a spot, you know, where
you can be refreshed and be rejuvenated, be renewed. Sorry
I couldn't get that thought out.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
But there. You know, I know other people who've done
some amazing things to help with that wellness center too.
I'm thinking about Sandra, another one of my buddies, who
you know, made a commitment there as well, and I
just think it's terrific that we have. It's important that
our public knows that they're is emotional support along with
(06:27):
financial support for our law enforcement officers who go through
things other people can't imagine.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
I totally agree and we actually have a donor wall
set up as you walk into the center and it
shows the people that stepped up in significant ways to
make that center possible. And it is not only the
financial it's not only having the building there. It is
the reminder as you walk past that for our officers
that people care, that they have their backs, that they
appreciate their contribution to our community. So it is a
(06:55):
mental boost just to see people like Steve, Sandra and
different ones stand up.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
And so all right, Rebecca, it's great to see you again.
Don't forget you can win a well, yes.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Ma'am, I also have to do time. I also have
to thank our folks at Bill collins Ford and WDRB
for stepping up and being big partners in the moment.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
Oh that's fantastic. Good on them. You can win a
twenty twenty five Lincoln Nautilus or forty thousand in cash,
and the raffle is January ninth.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
I see, Yes, we are drawing on January the ninth.
That'll be live on Facebook.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
This is a great idea for you to get a
stocking stuffer of a ticket.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
Yes, you print it right out from your printer. It's
an eight and a half by eleven, so it just
fills the copy sheet beautifully. You can write a little
note at the bottom.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
It's perfect, all right, good deal, all right, and like
you said, your odds are pretty good on this thing.
Right now, go to LMPF dot org. Right at the
top it says Officer and Distress Raffle and you just
click that little learn more button. We'll do that. Great
to see you again.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
Great to see you, Thank you, Terry, Merry Christmas.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
Rebecca grig Non Recer and we're right back in a month,
coming on news radio eight forty WHS
So good.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
You're everywhere to support the Louisville Metro Police Foundation, and
a lot of folks in our community know what that
is and know the support system that it is, the
safety net it is for our law enforcement officers, and
we need to have certain things going on to keep
(00:22):
raising funds because tell folks how the funds are spent
to help our police.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Well, the funds we're raising right now. It's our twentieth year,
so we have been around since two thousand and five
supporting our officers and we are raising for our Officer
in Distress fund. So what that fund does is it
comes alongside officers and members of their immediate family when
they stuffer a catastrophic event or injury, and it allows
us to take some of the financial weight off their
shoulders so that they can focus on healing and be
(00:51):
at their very best as they serve in our community.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
We just lost another officer recently.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
We did. Lieutenant Nick Deess passed away after about of
cancer and he was an absolutely amazing guy. But we
were able to show up in a big way thanks
to the community, thanks to people like you that support
and step up and make sure our officers do not
walk along we were able to walk with his wife,
Amanda and their young son Nate.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Good for you, and I saw Nick Wilt's name on
your website there too. People love him obviously an officer
who was shot in the bank shooting a couple of years.
Oh my gosh, he's been terrific. But obviously the foundation
helps support in ways that others can't. And so it's
so good what you do. So I know you have
(01:38):
a raffle that's coming up to win this twenty twenty
five Lincoln Nautilus, and or you can take forty in cash.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
Yeah, yeah, So if you don't need a car, I
mean take the forty. I would love the forty in cash,
but I can't play.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
You probably got a police officer to drive you home
or drive you to the bank or ere. We're gonna
take the forty. Yeah, we get a right to that
for sure.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Lights and sirens if you prefer. But it's a good
way to help support the Officer in Distress fund. And
the odds are really good. Right now, we've sold under
six hundred tickets. We've got twenty twenty five to sell.
So you can make it as a holiday gift, a
stocking stuffer, it prints out a really nice ticket you
just buy online and.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Oh that's a great idea. Yeah, yeah, go online to
lmp F Louisville Metro Police Foundation. That's the letters LMPF
dot org and you can find it right at the top.
It says Officer in distress raffle and you are You're remarried,
but you're a widow of a police officer, and so
(02:40):
you've you've learned how the brotherhood and sisterhood of police
can surround and sustain family members.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
They are a family. That is something that was really
important to my first husband, Peter. It is one of
the reasons that he went into law enforcement, obviously to
serve the community, but just seeing how they take care
of each other and the good time that they have
while they're serving and while they're seeing things that we
don't have to see because they're out on the street.
And I just feel really blessed to be able to
(03:10):
work to support these heroes that are quietly doing so
many good things. I mean, they're taking money out of
their own pockets to take care of people in need
on the street. And it's nice to be able to
work for an organization that allows the community to come
forull circle and get back to them.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
And you've known you for years, and you know you've
walked a path in life, and good for you where
you are today and how you put your heart and
soul into this.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
I feel like it's part of Peter's legacy. This foundation
was created by an amazing board of directors, but I
feel like I am also responsible for carrying on Peter's name,
and I feel like he continues to bless his brothers
and sisters in blue, and they continue to include me
as their little sister or now with the years that
have passed, their mother figures.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Don't say that.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
I swear some of these people coming out of the
academy could be my children. But they're amazing people, just amazing.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Occasionally you see some of these new officers and you think,
wait a minute, are you in a high school play?
Is that what that is? At uniform?
Speaker 1 (04:12):
All that good keeps you young, terry, keeps you looking good.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
That's great. But there are various events that help the
Louisville Metro Police Foundation. I know because of my friend
Steve Bass. He works hard on me. That fitness center.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
The wellness center, the wellness center, we are actually entertaining
some people, Well, entertaining sounds bad. We're teaching some people
from Jacksonville with a partnership we have with the international
Chiefs of Police, and they're coming in and we're trying
to get this stood up all over the United States.
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Right. Steve told me there have been a bunch of
people coming through from police departments really everywhere. Yeah, who
want to see this wellness center?
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Yeah? And Steve's our chair now, so he's been an
integral part of getting all this off the ground. And
his enthusiasm and his zest for support is just it's contagious.
I love it.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
But give people an idea what the Wellness Center does
for office.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
So the Wellness Center supports officers supporting the five pillars
of wellness, so it's physical, mental, spiritual, social, and financial.
So a well officer is going to interact well with
the community. So when they are equipped, they are trained
there at their very best, then they could be at
their very best to serve our community. So it has
been a win win for the community and for the
(05:23):
officers because that is there, it's all in one place.
It's holistic, it's separate from the police department, so they
can just go there. And we actually just did a
holiday lunch and it was very well attended. Texas Roadhouse
are huge partners and they came out and it's just
it's been really amazing.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
And it being separate from the police headquarters, which obviously
just shifted to, gives them a place off campus essentially,
so you're not at work. Yeah, because when you're working
out at work, you're trying to eat better at work.
Whatever these things are, it's a different thing because all
you're thinking is I got to get back.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
To work exactly. It gets you out of the building.
It gets you over to a spot, you know, where
you can be refreshed and be rejuvenated, be renewed. Sorry
I couldn't get that thought out.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
But there. You know, I know other people who've done
some amazing things to help with that wellness center too.
I'm thinking about Sandra, another one of my buddies, who
you know, made a commitment there as well, and I
just think it's terrific that we have. It's important that
our public knows that they're is emotional support along with
(06:27):
financial support for our law enforcement officers who go through
things other people can't imagine.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
I totally agree and we actually have a donor wall
set up as you walk into the center and it
shows the people that stepped up in significant ways to
make that center possible. And it is not only the
financial it's not only having the building there. It is
the reminder as you walk past that for our officers
that people care, that they have their backs, that they
appreciate their contribution to our community. So it is a
(06:55):
mental boost just to see people like Steve, Sandra and
different ones stand up.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
And so all right, Rebecca, it's great to see you again.
Don't forget you can win a well, yes.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Ma'am, I also have to do time. I also have
to thank our folks at Bill collins Ford and WDRB
for stepping up and being big partners in the moment.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
Oh that's fantastic. Good on them. You can win a
twenty twenty five Lincoln Nautilus or forty thousand in cash,
and the raffle is January ninth.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
I see, Yes, we are drawing on January the ninth.
That'll be live on Facebook.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
This is a great idea for you to get a
stocking stuffer of a ticket.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
Yes, you print it right out from your printer. It's
an eight and a half by eleven, so it just
fills the copy sheet beautifully. You can write a little
note at the bottom.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
It's perfect, all right, good deal, all right, and like
you said, your odds are pretty good on this thing.
Right now, go to LMPF dot org. Right at the
top it says Officer and Distress Raffle and you just
click that little learn more button. We'll do that. Great
to see you again.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
Great to see you, Thank you, Terry, Merry Christmas.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
Rebecca grig Non Recer and we're right back in a month,
coming on news radio eight forty WHS
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