Only On 9: Classmates Of Fallen Dallas Officer Honor Him During Class Reunion Saturday

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com)   —  One of the five Dallas police officer's slain Thursday evening attended high school in southern California.

Lorne Ahrens graduated Bishop Alemany in Mission Hills 30 years ago.

At a reunion Saturday at the Hotel Angeleno, his classmates spent much of their time remembering their friend.

KCAL9's Jennifer Kastner spoke to some of his classmates. It is a story that is Only On 9.

"I think that's most important that we celebrate his life more than anything else because of what he did and how he gave back," said classmate Fred Arnold.

Inside the reunion, a plate for Ahrens with a single red rose at his place setting.

Ahrens' family still lives in Simi Valley.

"He was always very, very helpful whenever I couldn't figure something out, especially in math because we took the same math classes for two years he was very, very helpful," said Arnold.

"Just a very kind person a sense of humor and caring," said Eric Cartier.

Ahrens was a 14-year veteran of the Dallas PD.

But before that, he spent 11 years working with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department working as a law enforcement technician.

His father William Ahrens  spoke with KCAL9 via Skype Friday night about his son's love for his family.

"The pinnacle of his life was his children. he adored his children. He was a big strong guy 6-foot 5, rough and tough he was fearless but that same guy would have tea with his daughter," said his dad.

Old friends hope this tragedy opens up a dialog for change.

"Life is so precious and we have to learn how to get along better. We have to learn how to come up with better solutions to many of the challenges we face right now." said Arnold.

A lot of the former classmates told Kastner they hadn't seen Ahrens in 30 years but they had nothing but fond and wonderful memories about him.