The wife of a St. Paul police officer who died unexpectedly last week is a volunteer who has led efforts to provide blue memorial roses at law enforcement funerals.

Now, people are rallying around Shanna McArthur and a fundraiser has been established for her.

Officer Eric McArthur, 45, passed away at his Burnsville home early Friday of suspected cardiac arrest. He was “a loved husband, caring dad and a courageous officer and veteran,” Gretchen Gifford, a friend of Shanna McArthur’s, wrote on social media Monday night.

St. Paul Police Officer Eric McArthur with his K-9, Finn. (Courtesy of the St. Paul Police Department)

“It’s not fair that he was taken from his family at such a young age and with kids who are so young and deserve to have their dad watch them run in cross country meets, march in the high school band and dance in ballets!” Gifford continued.

Shanna McArthur is memorial rose director for Backing the Blue Line, a Minnesota nonprofit that supports law enforcement officers’ spouses and significant others. They prepare and distribute blue memorial roses for funerals and provide ongoing support for families.

When a gunman killed Burnsville firefighter/paramedic Adam Finseth and Burnsville officers Matthew Ruge and Paul Elmstrand in February 2024, police officers’ wives from around Minnesota readied 4,000 roses for the memorial service. The effort was about more than the roses, which they handed out to people in attendance at the service.

They wanted the recipients to know: “We’re thinking about them. We’re there with them. We support them,” Shanna McArthur said at the time.

Gifford, president of Backing the Blue Line, said they will be preparing blue roses for Eric McArthur’s funeral.

Buckets of roses painted red and blue are ready as members of Backing the Blue prepare for the memorial service for Burnsville first responders at Savage Fire Station No. 1 on Feb. 23, 2024. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

Eric McArthur, a father of two, “worked hard to support their family as a K-9 officer for the city of St. Paul and the loss of his income will put some financial strain on Shanna and the kids,” which is the reason for the online fundraiser, which can be found at btbl.info/McArthurFundraiser, Gifford wrote. He and Shanna were married for 18 years.

Gifford said Shanna McArthur is “one of the most giving and kind people I have ever met. … I don’t know if she knows the word ‘no’ or the phrase ‘I can’t this time.’”

McArthur was previously a police and fire dispatcher for the Bloomington Police Department. He joined the St. Paul Police Department nearly 10 years ago and was with the K-9 unit since 2021, serving with his K-9 partner Finn. He was also on the department’s honor guard and peer support team.

He served 20 years in the Army National Guard and deployed three times to Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait. He earned the Bronze Star.

“Eric will be remembered for his bravery, his compassion, and the quiet strength he brought to every part of his life,” his obituary said. “His legacy lives on in those he protected, served, and loved – especially in Caleb and Lila, who were his heart and his greatest pride.”

Visitation will be 3-7 p.m. Saturday at O’Halloran & Murphy Funeral Home, 575 S. Snelling Ave., St. Paul. A memorial service will be 4 p.m. Sunday at Hosanna Church, 9600 163rd St W., Lakeville.

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