Memorial for slain Dallas officers to be preserved

The memorial outside the Dallas Police Department will remain there until Tuesday as people from around the country continue to pay their respects to the five fallen officers killed in last week's downtown Dallas ambush.

However, the long and difficult process of saving the mementos and keepsakes brought to the memorial is already underway.

As rain threatened to destroy the growing memorial on Friday, Dallas library workers and police pulled every piece that needed to be saved and took them to the library.

Everything from stuffed animals, toys, countless flags, posters, down to the smallest handwritten notes were stored in rows of book shelves.

Police and fire patches from across the country, some ripped right off the uniform, covered the floor as they were laid out to dry.

Each patch showed love and support from El Paso, Miami, Newport beach and on.

“You can't help but be moved by the people who have reached out to the city, to police, to DART,” said Dallas Public Library Director Jo Giudice. “It's just been overwhelming, overwhelming that we're sad but the love you really feel. I feel a lot of love here.”

“Most of the people who left things probably didn't know these officers,” said Peter Coyle. “That's a very touching, touching gesture to do something for a complete stranger.”

Library reps say items meant for a specific officer will be delivered to family members. The rest will be preserved for displays for future generations.

The items saved will be open to museums to borrow and put on display.

The library is planning a photo memorial where you can see some of the items in November.