This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/after-fulfilling-dreams-of-becoming-cops-friends-and-relatives-say-slain-nypd-officers-were-just-getting-started/2014/12/23/1787e29c-9431-4fe0-b65e-841cb5a2ebde_story.html?wprss=rss_homepage

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
After fulfilling dreams of becoming cops, friends and relatives say slain NYPD officers were just getting started After fulfilling dreams of becoming cops, friends and relatives say slain NYPD officers were just getting started
(about 1 hour later)
Friends remember Rafael Ramos telling them he wanted to be a police officer when he was just a teenager. For more than a decade, he worked at Airborne Express/DHL delivering packages, and later became a school safety officer. But this year, his second as a member of the New York Police Department, the 40-year-old’s ambitions were still evolving. In September, he enrolled in an intensive, 10-week course to become a lay chaplain, a role which promised to put him on the front lines of local tragedies, where he would provide emergency spiritual support to those in need. Friends remember Rafael Ramos saying he wanted to be a police officer when he was just a teenager. For more than a decade, he worked at Airborne Express/DHL delivering packages, and later became a school safety officer. But this year, his second as a member of the New York Police Department, the 40-year-old’s ambitions were still evolving. In September, he enrolled in an intensive, 10-week course to become a lay chaplain, a role which promised to put him on the front lines of local tragedies, where he would provide spiritual support to those in need.
Instructors said Ramos had dedicated himself to the training, earning 101.5 out of 105 possible points on his final exam. He was scheduled to graduate with 150 others Saturday afternoon, but a little over an hour before, his own tragedy struck. Instructors said Ramos had dedicated himself to the training, earning 101.5 out of 105 possible points on his final exam. He was scheduled to graduate with 150 others Saturday afternoon. A little over an hour before that ceremony was to take place, tragedy struck him.
Ramos was fatally shot alongside Officer Wenjian Liu as the two men sat in a squad car in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. The gunman, 28-year-old Ismaaiyl Brinsley, a man with a troubled history that included numerous arrests and violence, fled to a nearby subway station and committed suicide. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said the men never had time to draw their weapons and may not have even glimpsed their killer. They were working in the neighborhood as part of a special detail to help with crime reduction in the area, police said. Ramos was fatally shot alongside Officer Wenjian Liu as the two men sat in a squad car in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. The gunman, 28-year-old Ismaaiyl Brinsley, a man with a troubled history that included numerous arrests and violence, fled to a nearby subway station and committed suicide. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said the officers never had time to draw their weapons and may not have even glimpsed their killer. They were working in the neighborhood as part of a special detail aimed at reducing crime in the area, police said.
The men’s murder was the kind of senseless violence, with its capacity for shattering a family or traumatizing a neighborhood, that Ramos would have been attending to as a chaplain, according to the Rev. Marcos Miranda, president of the New York State Chaplain Task Force. A born-again Catholic whose life revolved around family and church, Ramos told Miranda he was drawn to the chaplaincy program because of a growing desire to protect and serve the needy. The shootings, with their power to shatter a family or traumatize a neighborhood, are exactly the kind of tragic situation Ramos would have been attending to as a chaplain, according to the Rev. Marcos Miranda, president of the New York State Chaplain Task Force. A born-again Catholic whose life revolved around family and church, Ramos told Miranda he was drawn to the chaplaincy program because of a growing desire to work with the needy.
“He said to me that he could see himself doing this ministry full time after he retired from the police force,” Miranda told The Post, noting that it’s not uncommon for classes to dwindle in size as students realize that they’ll be caring for drug addicts, criminals and people in the throes of intense grief.“He said to me that he could see himself doing this ministry full time after he retired from the police force,” Miranda told The Post, noting that it’s not uncommon for classes to dwindle in size as students realize that they’ll be caring for drug addicts, criminals and people in the throes of intense grief.
Bernice Cruz, a lifelong friend who grew up playing sports with Ramos and a large pack of kids in East New York’s Highland Park, said he was drawn to police work and chaplaincy because he was motivated to set a good example for his sons — a 13-year-old middle schooler in Brooklyn and another at Bowdoin College in Maine.Bernice Cruz, a lifelong friend who grew up playing sports with Ramos and a large pack of kids in East New York’s Highland Park, said he was drawn to police work and chaplaincy because he was motivated to set a good example for his sons — a 13-year-old middle schooler in Brooklyn and another at Bowdoin College in Maine.
“Growing up in East New York, men have to show their sons how to be men and how to be good men,” she said. “When it came to his own kids, that’s something he took seriously.”“Growing up in East New York, men have to show their sons how to be men and how to be good men,” she said. “When it came to his own kids, that’s something he took seriously.”
RELATED: After his father is killed in the line of duty, a teen turns to FacebookRELATED: After his father is killed in the line of duty, a teen turns to Facebook
Deeply spiritual, Ramos volunteered for church youth performances at Christ Tabernacle in Queens, where he was a member, according to the Wall Street Journal. Ramos volunteered for church youth performances at Christ Tabernacle in Queens, where he was a member, according to the Wall Street Journal.
“It’d be a comedy thing, to make the kids laugh,” 32-year-old Jason Ayala, a member of the church, told the paper. “He was a great member, and a very humble man.”“It’d be a comedy thing, to make the kids laugh,” 32-year-old Jason Ayala, a member of the church, told the paper. “He was a great member, and a very humble man.”
His neighbor, 71-year-old Janette Cruz, agreed, noting that she never saw him in uniform, but she always saw him going to church.His neighbor, 71-year-old Janette Cruz, agreed, noting that she never saw him in uniform, but she always saw him going to church.
“I will always remember him coming out of his house on his way to church and having Spanish gospel music blasting from his car,” she told The Post. “He was a very pleasant and very religious man.”“I will always remember him coming out of his house on his way to church and having Spanish gospel music blasting from his car,” she told The Post. “He was a very pleasant and very religious man.”
“A lifelong Brooklyn resident who lived in the Cypress Hills neighborhood where he had grown up, Ramos didn’t seem like a typical officer in some ways. He had a quiet and shy exterior, one offset by the hint of a mischievous smile, but underneath there was something softer and sweeter, a kindness that those around him quickly picked up on. “A lifelong Brooklyn resident who lived in the Cypress Hills neighborhood where he had grown up, Ramos defied the stereotype of a police officer. He was  quiet and shy with a mischievous smile, and those around him quickly picked up on something soft and sweet in his nature.
“He had the most wonderful eyes,” Miranda said. “You looked into his eyes and it was just kindness all over. That’s what radiated from him.”“He had the most wonderful eyes,” Miranda said. “You looked into his eyes and it was just kindness all over. That’s what radiated from him.”
After many conversations with Ramos over the past few months, Miranda said he was confident that the officer was going to make an excellent chaplain.After many conversations with Ramos over the past few months, Miranda said he was confident that the officer was going to make an excellent chaplain.
“He really seemed to embody the opposite of the stereotypes that people hear about police,” he said. “I  just hope that at some point people can see there’s good in all of us, and this gentleman really was a representation of that.” “I  just hope that at some point people can see there’s good in all of us, and this gentleman really was a representation of that,” he said.
Ramos wasn’t the only one embarking on a new path. Liu had arrived in the U.S. from, China, with his family in 1994 seeking education and opportunity, according to news reports.Ramos wasn’t the only one embarking on a new path. Liu had arrived in the U.S. from, China, with his family in 1994 seeking education and opportunity, according to news reports.
After learning English at Lafayette High School, he attended Kingsborough Community College and the College of Staten Island, where he majored in accounting, according to the New York Daily News. After working as an auxiliary officer for the 72nd Precinct in Brooklyn, Liu graduated from the Police Academy in 2007, the paper reported.After learning English at Lafayette High School, he attended Kingsborough Community College and the College of Staten Island, where he majored in accounting, according to the New York Daily News. After working as an auxiliary officer for the 72nd Precinct in Brooklyn, Liu graduated from the Police Academy in 2007, the paper reported.
James Ng, president of the National Asian Peace Officers Association, told the Associated Press that Liu was conversant in several Chinese dialects and helped the department with community relations in Chinese neighborhoods.James Ng, president of the National Asian Peace Officers Association, told the Associated Press that Liu was conversant in several Chinese dialects and helped the department with community relations in Chinese neighborhoods.
“A lot of Chinese families want their children to become doctors and lawyers,” Ng said. “He came here and wanted to become a police officer.”“A lot of Chinese families want their children to become doctors and lawyers,” Ng said. “He came here and wanted to become a police officer.”
His family reiterated his special role within the department at a news conference alongside public officials outside their home on Monday.His family reiterated his special role within the department at a news conference alongside public officials outside their home on Monday.
“He was an asset to the Police Department, using his Chinese language skills whenever and wherever it was needed,” Liu’s family said in a statement, according to the Daily News. “He was looking forward to having his own family.”“He was an asset to the Police Department, using his Chinese language skills whenever and wherever it was needed,” Liu’s family said in a statement, according to the Daily News. “He was looking forward to having his own family.”
“He was a dedicated public servant who committed his life to helping others, and we will deeply miss him,” the family’s statement added.“He was a dedicated public servant who committed his life to helping others, and we will deeply miss him,” the family’s statement added.
Earlier this year, the 32-year-old moved to Brooklyn’s Gravesend section before marrying his wife, Pei Xia Chen. Liu wore a gray suit; his bride wore a white dress, and the couple celebrated with several hundred family and friends at a reception held at Super Lucky Seafood Restaurant on Eighth Avenue in Brooklyn, according to the New York Times.Earlier this year, the 32-year-old moved to Brooklyn’s Gravesend section before marrying his wife, Pei Xia Chen. Liu wore a gray suit; his bride wore a white dress, and the couple celebrated with several hundred family and friends at a reception held at Super Lucky Seafood Restaurant on Eighth Avenue in Brooklyn, according to the New York Times.
“He had so many friends,” the manager told the Times. “The place was packed.”“He had so many friends,” the manager told the Times. “The place was packed.”
On Monday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio visited the officer’s home and spoke to Chen about the loss of her husband.On Monday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio visited the officer’s home and spoke to Chen about the loss of her husband.
She “was looking forward to building a family, and now her husband was gone in an instant,” he said, according to DNAinfo New York.She “was looking forward to building a family, and now her husband was gone in an instant,” he said, according to DNAinfo New York.
Sophia He, 30, told the Wall Street Journal that Liu and his wife were regulars in her bodega, stopping by to purchase scratch lottery tickets almost every day. People in the neighborhood told the paper that the couple was quiet but clearly in love.Sophia He, 30, told the Wall Street Journal that Liu and his wife were regulars in her bodega, stopping by to purchase scratch lottery tickets almost every day. People in the neighborhood told the paper that the couple was quiet but clearly in love.
“Every time he was in here, he was so happy,” He told the paper. “He was always with his wife.”“Every time he was in here, he was so happy,” He told the paper. “He was always with his wife.”
Bin Fin Liang, 56, who owns a restaurant supply shop, got to know Officer Liu when he was still at the Police Academy, according to the New York Times. Liang told the Times that he’d asked Liu at one point why he wanted to be a police officer.Bin Fin Liang, 56, who owns a restaurant supply shop, got to know Officer Liu when he was still at the Police Academy, according to the New York Times. Liang told the Times that he’d asked Liu at one point why he wanted to be a police officer.
“I know that being a cop is dangerous but I must do it,” Liu told his friend. “If I don’t do it and you don’t do it, then who is going to do it?”“I know that being a cop is dangerous but I must do it,” Liu told his friend. “If I don’t do it and you don’t do it, then who is going to do it?”