LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - To his wife and children, he was a loving father. To his parents, a son that followed a family's calling to serve. To a community, he was a hero who died while protecting others.
"That's the kind of police officer Nick was," LMPD Chief Steve Conrad recently said.
This past week came a tragedy Louisville hadn't seen since 2005.
Officer Nick Rodman was killed in the line of duty.
"Nick you made a difference," Conrad said after his death. "He will be remembered for a lifetime."
The community then rallied in support. There were countless fundraisers, from restaurants to barber shops.
Officer also held a flag baring Nick's name during a 10 mile race as people chanted "LMPD."
It was Saturday when the officer would be taken to the places special to him one last time during a procession. He was taken to his high school, Holy Cross, the neighborhood where he grew up and his division where his fellow officers laid roses on his car and held each other through the pain.
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The procession touched the thousands of people who lined the route, including a three year old child who at his young age, saluted the hero.
The image is now capturing hearts across the county.
"What are you doing?" the boy's mother asks in the video. "Saluting?"
"Saluting," the boy responds.
Sunday would see another vigil. As hundreds show up once again to say thank you and goodbye.
"You can rest easy now, and smile down on us Nick because we've got it from here," his beat partner said during the vigil.
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