More than 4,000 family members, friends and fellow law-enforcement officers attended today’s funeral for Colorado Springs police officer Ken Jordan at the New Life Church north of the city, east of the Air Force Academy.
Jordan, 32, was killed a week ago when he approached a motorist suspected of drunk driving. As he approached the car, the driver opened fire with a pistol, killing Jordan. He is the second police officer in Colorado Springs to be killed in the line of duty this year.
An honor guard accompanied pall bearers who carried the flag-draped casket into the church. As the pall bearers took their seats, two guard members flanked the casket, standing at parade rest, facing the audience.
“It’s unbelievable. It seems like yesterday like we just went through this,” said fellow police officer and honor guard member Jimmy Paladino. “I’m proud to do it, but I could definitely go without doing it.”
Following the singing of the traditional Irish lullaby, “Danny Boy,” Jordan’s sister, Sue, told the packed church that she began this morning in honor of her brother, a practical joker, by dousing her husband with cold water as he showered. “I could hear Ken laughing,” she said.
She said her family took comfort in knowing that her brother died doing what he loved to do. “I love you, little brother,” she said in closing.
Fellow officers drove in from all over the state. Several members from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol drove to the service from Boise City, OK.
“Anymore, you don’t know who to trust,” said Oklahoma Trooper Boyd Perry. “You don’t trust anyone. This (traffic stops) is the scariest part of the job.”
Added El Paso County deputy sheriff Gene Fairchild, “We learned a long time ago that traffic and domestics are the two most dangerous calls. But you can’t dwell on it. You just get over the fact of thinking about your own mortality and then you’re right back into it.”
Interim Police Chief Dave Felice called Jordan “the face of the Colorado Springs Police Department. You could look at his face and know he was meant to be a cop.”
Felice said Jordan was highly respected, trustworthy, polite…a man of character who will always be remember for his willingness to help others. “He will be remembered for his sense of humor and his sense of adventure,” Felice said.
Jordan’s girlfriend, Heidi Anderson, gave an emotional tribute, calling him “my rock.” She joked how she hesitated at first to date a police officer, only to be persuaded by Jordan’s charms. She recalled how they once missed their cruise ship, arriving at the dock only to see it pulling away. She lost his favorite fishing lure.
“Because of you I know what love means,” she said tearfully. “You rocked my world, baby. I love you and will miss you so much.” An officer escorted her off the stage and waited as she bent over and kissed the flag covering Jordan’s coffin.
A fellow police officer, Brock Ellerman of the Denver Police Department, said he became friends with Jordan 10 years ago while the two were in college together.
“He was the kind of person you wanted to have as your friend or to have your son grow up to be or to have your daughter marry,” he said. “I am a better person because of my friendship with him.”
As the hearse carrying Jordan’s casket left the church, three black limosines fell in behind, followed by more than 100 police cars, fire trucks and government vehicles, all with emergency lights flashing. One observer described it as “a sea of red and blue lights.” The procession headed south on Interstate 25 to Uintah Street, where it exited and worked its way to the police operations center downtown.
A reception was held later at the Broadmoor Hotel’s International Center.
Jordan was born and raised in Des Plaines, Illinois, where he played varsity tennis in high school. Early on, he joined the Illinois State Rifle Association, which trained him to be an expert marksman. By the time he was 18, Jordan was ranked second in the nation for high-power rifle competition.
He studied law enforcement at Western Illinois University, where he was a member of the varisty tennis team and Delta Tau Delta fraternity.
He joined the Colorado Springs Police Department in January, 2000. The funeral program listed his hobbies as skiing, kayaking, scuba diving, hunting, fishing and “hanging out with his buddies shooting pool.”
