Passaic Local 14 members put fallen officers on their backs for an extraordinary honor at the Snow Bowl for Special Olympics
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Passaic Local 14 members put fallen officers on their backs for an extraordinary honor at the Snow Bowl for Special Olympics
The backs of the jerseys of the Passaic Gridiron Gladiators show the name of the Local 14 member above the name of the fallen officer each player honored.
58 NEW JERSEY COPS ■ MARCH 2017
Members of Passaic Local 14 who played in the Snow Bowl with Local 14 State Delegate Moe Farallo( far right) and NJ State PBA Executive Vice-President Marc Kovar, also a Local 14 member( second from right). n BY AMBER RAMUNDO n PHOTOS BY ED CARATTINI, JR.
Just before noon on March 3, members of Passaic Local 14 huddled near the end zone of MetLife Stadium. As the players gathered together, their backs faced outward and stadium onlookers witnessed the deeper meaning of the game for this team of law enforcement officers.
Their gray jerseys with gold numbers displayed the names of New Jersey officers lost in the line of duty. And as they took the field, the Passaic Gridiron Gladiators kicked off a day of tribute that they hope will become an annual ritual for the Snow Bowl.
“ We felt it was necessary to display the unity that we have within our ranks to the world,” explained Passaic Local 14 member Luis Delossantos, who organized the team and proposed the tribute.“ But we also wanted to make sure that the focus of why we’ re doing this isn’ t overshadowed. We’ re here to support the NJ Special Olympics, which is a cause that is very near and dear to us.”
And support they did, raising $ 5,000 for the Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run. Dozens of teams from other PBA Locals, as well as those from agencies throughout the state, participated in the Snow Bowl flag football tournament. The Snow Bowl has raised more than $ 2.4 million for Special Olympics athletes since the event began 11 years ago.
Participating in the event for the first time, Passaic made its first statement of honor winning its first game by a 20-0 score against officers from Port Authority Local 116. State PBA Executive Vice-President Marc Kovar, a Local 14 member, watched the game unfold, taking pride in the initiative to spotlight fallen officers.
“ It just shows you every day you go to work, you never know if you’ re coming home that night,” Kovar shared while family members in the stadium cheered on their fathers, husbands and brothers on the field.“ It shows respect and dedication to all the officers that have given their lives.”
As Delossantos rushed the field, spectators observed on the back of his jersey,“ Delossantos for R. D. Strone.” Robert D. Strone was a Passaic officer who was killed in 1958. When Passaic’ s 15 Snow Bowl players each decided to research and select one fallen officer’ s name to wear, Delossantos knew that he would wear number 100, to represent Strone’ s badge number and show his family that Strone’ s sacrifice is not forgotten no matter how much time has passed.
“ Sometimes the families are left to their mourning, but the one thing the families can’ t do is get over the fact that they lost someone,” explained Delossantos, who invited Strone’ s daughters, Jean and Robin, to the Snow Bowl to see the tribute to their father