A Berks County police department is inviting the community to come together and honor one of its own.
Central Berks Police Officer Kristen Yaeger died in a car crash while on duty Friday and now a procession is set to take place Monday night in her memory.
Some businesses like Sparkle Shine Express Car Wash are already paying their respects.
Officer Kristen Yeager
The words “RIP Kristen” and “Prayers for Officer Yeager’s Family” flash on its board on Perkiomen Avenue Tuesday, paying tribute to the officer who died while in the line of duty.
Investigators say on Friday, Officer Yeager was responding to an emergency assistance request from a neighboring police department when her patrol car left the roadway, entered a ditch, and hit a tree. They tell us she passed away that night.
WFMZ-TV | Sydney Kay
Support throughout this community has since poured in. A Central Berks Police cruiser parked outside the department is covered in a growing memorial of flags, flowers, and stuffed animals.
The procession set for 8 p.m. Monday night will begin at the Reading Hospital, traveling along Penn Avenue to Route 422 east, to the Mount Penn Exit, then heading west on Perkiomen Avenue, across Howard Boulevard and will stop at the parked cruiser next to the station for 30 seconds. It will then end at the Lutz Funeral Home.
WFMZ-TV | Sydney Kay
Police are asking all residents and businesses along Route 422 and Perkiomen Avenue to turn their lights blue, wear blue, and line the route.
On the same road as the station, the owner of Sparkle Shine Express Car Wash says the police department is like family to him and tells us it’s a sad day.
“I’m going to miss her because she went out of her way to do a lot for people. She did things for me, she made me laugh… They put their life on the line and do things for people so it’s just sad, it’s heartbreaking. I feel for her family and her young children,” said owner David App.
WFMZ-TV | Sydney Kay
Officer Yeager leaves behind her husband and three children.
We spoke to officials with the police department and they say that motorcycle groups, several police departments, and emergency service agencies will be lined up along the route.