The last time the Woburn Police Department boarded a bus and headed toward Route 93 on Montvale Avenue, it was to attend Officer John "Jack" Maguire's funeral on Dec. 31, 2010.

On Friday, WPD was back on a bus driving on Montvale Avenue. This time it was to honor Officer Maguire at the State House.

Officer John "Jack" Maguire was honored posthumously for his bravery on Dec. 26, 2010 in the Friday afternoon ceremony. That night, in the middle of a blizzard, Officer Maguire stopped, shot and killed an armed robber.

Officer Maguire was also killed in the gunfight.

Almost one year later, Officer Maguire's family—wife, Desiree, and children, Bryan, Tara and Sean—accepted the Trooper George L. Hanna Memorial Award for Bravery at the Massachusetts State House in Boston. Officer Maguire was given the day's highest honor—the Hanna Medal of Honor.

A single Woburn Police Department patrolman's hat was left on a chair among the other honorees, along with a white pair of dress uniform gloves. The hat and gloves represented Officer Maguire, who is now "patrolling the streets of heaven," said Father Joseph Baggetta.

Members of the Woburn Police Department joined the Maguires at the State House Friday, all in formal dress uniform for the ceremony. Gov. Deval Patrick, Lt. Gov. Tim Murray and Secretary of Public Safety Mary Beth Heffernan presented nearly 30 officers with the Hanna awards.

When Officer Maguire's name was read, members of the Woburn Police Department, retired and present, rose and stood at attention in honor of the fallen officer.

In presenting the award to the Maguire family, Heffernan said Officer Maguire "gave the last full measure of devotion," in his actions on Dec. 26, protecting the city of Woburn and his fellow police officers.

According to Massachusetts State Police Spokesman David Procopio, Friday's  awards recognize 23 city and town police officers, three Massachusetts state troopers, and one federal agent for acts of heroism and bravery in 11 separate incidents from 2010.

The awards have been given out to law enforcement officers in Massachusetts since the mid-1980s. Trooper Hanna was a 10-year veteran of the MSP when he was fatally shot by three assailants after stopping a car in the town of Auburn in 1983.