The daughter of a local New York State trooper who died while on duty had the opportunity to honor her late father at Tuesday's Bison's game.
Nine-year-old Brooke Dobson threw out the first pitch at Tuesday's home game against the Indianapolis Indians, and the ball made it all the way to the plate.
"I originally played baseball, so it was pretty easy for me," Dobson said. "I'm just really happy I'm doing this today."
Brooke threw the pitch on behalf of the Badge of Honor Association, a non-profit organization that raises money for the families of fallen police officers. The organization also supports officers who are involved in critical or serious incidents while in the line of duty. The organization supports all law enforcement officers across all 24 counties of central and western New York.
"Now more than ever we see law enforcement under attack, and it's so important we protect the thin blue line and continue to do events like this," said Badge of Honor Association founder Justin Collins.
Brooke's family was the first family ever helped by the Badge of Honor Association.
Her father, Kevin Dobson, was killed in 2011 while performing a routine traffic stop on the Youngman Memorial Highway in Amherst. Dobson was struck by a passing vehicle while he was out of his own vehicle and standing on the side of the roadway.
Dobson's death inspired changes to the state's Move Over Law, which now requires all motorists to switch lanes when approaching a police, emergency or official vehicle displaying flashing or amber lights.
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