When people come to see the plaques, Jones said hopefully they will see more than just faceless names. She hopes they will see the names and think about fallen officers like Fred House, shot and killed during the Singer-Swapp standoff in Summit County in 1988; or Roosevelt Police Chief Cecil Gurr, who was shot and killed while responding to a domestic dispute in 2001; or Salt Lake police officer Jim Faraone, who was hit and killed by a car while helping with a traffic accident on the freeway.

"It's important that they are not forgotten, that they did put their lives on the line. Especially for the families that are left, it's important that they have that place again they can go and say, 'This is your dad, or your mom, and this is what they did,"' Jones said.

The original Fallen Officer's Memorial was in the rotunda of the Capitol from 1988 to 2006. Renovation of the Capitol temporarily displaced the memorial, however, and for two years the state went without one. In May, ground was broken on the new $1.3 million structure that includes three bronze statues that will be unveiled publicly for the first time today.

"They will depict law enforcement officers in real life situations," said memorial board vice president and Saratoga Springs Police Cpl. Aaron Rosen, who did not want to disclose many other details about the statues. "They are extraordinarily emotional. Each has a different feel."

One of the statutes will be of a female officer, the other two male, he said.

Between 2,000 to 3,000 people are expected to attend the 10 a.m. event today, which will include a formal roll call ceremony to honor the 125 men and one woman killed in the line of duty.

For Jones, she said she is pleased with the memorial and thankful for the work of Kirby and the committee that spearheaded the effort.

"I feel like my husband gave his life for something now other than someone not wanting a $100 open-container ticket," she said. "That hurts a lot knowing (my grandchildren) will never know their grandfather. But they can be part of (the dedication ceremony). They can see he was important to everyone around us."

"The whole thing is just very sweet," added Birgitta Wood, whose son, West Jordan police officer Ron Wood, was ambushed by a 17-year-old boy and shot in 2002. "It was really cool to see all those police officers' names there. It's a wonderful thing. It'll be a special thing to come and visit now and then."

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E-mail: preavy@desnews.com