By NIKOLAJ LASBO

UW News Lab

Historically, a candle in the window has been a symbol of reassurance to travelers, symbolizing a home or business that would greet the wanderer with open arms. Today, this symbol is being used locally to honor the fallen Lakewood officers.

The Ace Hardware in the Bridle Trails neighborhood of Kirkland has been at the forefront of the movement to distribute blue window lights to local residents. The store donates $2 from the sale of each bulb to the fund of the officers’ families.

“This is heartbreaking,” Sheldon Smith, the hardware store owner, said of the killings. “We are looking for ways that we can contribute and to help others contribute as well.”

Smith said he was compelled to honor and assist servicemen and women because he has a son currently serving a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He added that a number of police officers and firefighters live in his neighborhood in Woodinville.

“I hope that this isn’t just a splash in the pan,” said Don Short, store manager. “I hope that this encourages support for all police officers.”

Smith said the idea for the blue light program began when his wife heard a report on KOMO radio two days after the shooting about a 9-1-1 dispatcher in Puyallup suggesting that local residents put blue lights in their windows.

A Philadelphia woman who wanted to honor her son-in-law who had been killed in the line of duty, started displaying a blue light 20 years ago. According to Craig Floyd, CEO of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund: “The color blue is a symbol of peace. … Blue lights during the holiday season are a visible reminder of the service and sacrifice that law enforcement officers make on behalf of all Americans.”

Smith received a call from his wife suggesting they start a program to sell the lights. Almost simultaneously, retired Microsoft employee Sam Weirbach came into Smith’s store looking for 40 blue lights to give to neighbors and friends.

Although they didn’t have any on hand at the time, Smith and Short quickly ordered 250 units.

“We were really lucky in getting the items stocked as fast as we did,” Smith said. “We only get our shipment once a week and we placed the order right before it shipped.”

Weirbach said the program would not have succeeded without the quick thinking and initiative shown by Smith and Short.

“I am the kinda guy who says ‘You gotta make a move now, you can’t wait,’” Weirbach said. “I am really proud of Ace Hardware because they made the decision to go ahead with the program. This all happened because Ace said ‘Let’s jump on board.’”

To his credit, Weirbach contributed greatly to the success of the program. When the order arrived, he helped unload the truck, he solicited his neighbor to print 500 flyers to hang in other neighborhood stores advertising the program, and he has distributed his 40 lights to acquaintances throughout the Puget Sound.

Since the order arrived, the store hasn’t been able to keep the blue lights on its shelves. The demand has been so high that the store has also started selling full-size blue porch lights.

“It is nice to see members of the community come in that haven’t before,” Smith said. “It has been nice to see them rally behind this issue.”

Nikolaj Lasbo is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.