Tributes Comfort Family Of Slain MIT Officer Sean Collier

SOMERVILLE (CBS) - On Thursday, a fallen police officer will be honored in a big way. Sean Collier was the MIT officer shot and killed by the suspected Boston Marathon bombers who were trying to take his weapon.

He was just weeks away from realizing his dream to become a Somerville Police officer.

"People have been amazing and things like this have helped," Collier's sister Jennifer Lemmerman says, "and everyone who wants to celebrate Sean and pay tribute to Sean is comforting, but then you just have really bad days where you just miss him."

Jennifer is hoping Thursday will be a good day, because the Somerville Police Department will posthumously swear in Officer Sean Collier then retire his badge.

"It's a great way to honor him he was a really good cop," says Lemmerman. "He just believed in it strongly."

Jennifer says Sean's fellow officers have now become like family. They call, they text, the stop by often. All of it a comfort to deal with the pain. There have been fundraisers, celebrations, and lots of support, but this moment may mean the most.

"It's a comfort for us; it's not going to bring us closure, it would be great to be watching this exact ceremony with him here," Lemmerman says. "Since that can't happen it's nice to see them moving it forward for him."