SCRANTON -- The funeral today in Scranton was closed to a few hundred guests; troopers, political leaders, and family and friends of Corporal Bryon Dickson
More than 3,000 people listened to the service from outside St. Peter's Cathedral.
Guests at the funeral who were both inside and outside said they felt two things: pain and sadness for Corporal Bryon Dickson's family, and anxiety over the continuing manhunt for his alleged killer.
Church bells pierced the air on Wyoming Avenue. The sound of snare drums and bagpipes bounced off buildings in downtown Scranton. But the crowd of more than 3,000 who waited for Cpl. Dickson's arrival was silent.
The funeral mass drew police from all over the country and political dignitaries.
Governor Corbett was there, but, when Cpl. Dickson's flag-draped casket was carried into St. Peter's Cathedral, people from all walks of life, even the cathedral's everyday usher, felt the same thing.
"There's no word to put on something like this. Other than magnificent, I think, that's just me. And camaraderie between all our first responders," said Joan Narcoonis.
2,600 troopers and police officers stood outside the funeral mass. Some came from as far away as Alaska and Minnesota. Though their job was to stand at attention and watch over the mourners, some couldn't help but bow their heads in sadness.
"It's a brotherhood that we all share. Pennsylvania sent troopers to Florida when we lost one, so we tend to reciprocate," said Sgt. Joe Wigfall, Florida State Highway Patrol.
Cpl. Dickson was shot and killed outside the state police barracks in Pike County Friday night. His alleged killer is still on the loose.
Many troopers from the Blooming Grove barracks couldn't attend the funeral.
"All throughout the ceremony, I noticed certain faces missing. And I know that they're working, I know that they're in the woods, I know that they're doing their best to bring justice. But that's their job, and as the trooper said, it's who we are," said Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane.
An ever-present reminder that though Cpl. Dickson's watch is over his brother and sister troopers still have work to do.
"I really hope they get this guy and bring him to justice, because this is not right. We shouldn't have to gather like this in such sorrow," Kane added.
In his remarks at the funeral, state police commissioner Frank Noonan said that Corporal Bryon Dickson was the 95th Pennsylvania State Trooper to be killed in the line of duty.