Dec 2023. Blues Vol 39 No. 12

to “de-fund” their police departments.
Several stories recount the
effects of such decisions and the
results are horrific and sometimes
hilarious. An entire city council
board was saved from a burning
van by a cop that no idea these
same individuals had just voted to
end his job.
Reading about a cop’s decision
to take his own life is hard to read.
But in a Christmas Eve story, a
cop who lost his rookie partner
to gunfire, ends up under a bridge
with his gun in his hand. Suddenly
a young family of three living
under that same bridge, have an
encounter with the officer that not
only saves his life, but changes the
lives of hundreds more.
Saving a life is an experience
you will never forget. When a
mom flags you down to say her
house is on fire and her kids are
inside, what would you do? Of
course you call for Fire and tell
the dispatcher you’re going in the
house. Go inside a burning house?
In hindsight, I guess that was a
pretty stupid thing to do. After all.
we’re cops and they are firemen
trained to search for people in
burning buildings. But try standing
next to a mom while her kids
are burning up in a house waiting
on fire trucks that’s minutes away.
Nope. You go in and get them. I
coughed up black shit for days
after that. Fire Chief said I was an
idiot and NEVER do that again.
Yes, I received a 100-club award
for it. But the real reward was
seeing those boys grow up and
knowing that me being an ‘idiot’
made that happen. And my first
time being on the front page of
the local paper.
MY second appearance on that
local rag, was with an 18-month
little girl named Rosa who had
been sexually assaulted by her
step uncle and thrown like a piece
of garbage into a bayou. After
hours of searching and some
come to Jesus’ intervention by my
lieutenant, the suspect gave up
the location. My Lt. told me to go
bring her home. I found her under
a bridge and carried her lifeless
body to a waiting life flight helicopter.
I had no idea the news
media were taking my picture and
I didn’t care. I rode with her to the
hospital and watched that flight
crew bring her back to life. The
second I felt her squeeze my hand
and she opened her eyes; I knew
God was on that helicopter with
us. God choose to save Rosa and
I was just his servant. That very
event changed my life and hundreds
more. It was heartbreaking
and magical at the same time. I
never knew what happened to
that precious child. I heard she
moved back to Mexico with her
family. But one thing I do know, is
that God wanted her here on this
earth and for as long as she lived,
He would be there watching over
her.
It’s these stories that move us
and make us realize that being a
cop, a fireman or first responder
is more than a job, it’s a calling.
It’s truly Gods work. Children of
God & Peacemakers. So how can
you rate one story over another.
Every story is just as important
and meaningful as the one before
it and the one after it. There is no
way to prioritize God’s work.
The Blues 40th Anniversary Issue 143 143