Hicksville ceremony honors 40 more fallen police officers

Law enforcement from across the state braved rain and wind Saturday to add 40 new names to the police memorial wall in Hicksville.

The Fraternal Order of Police held its annual memorial ceremony to remember officers who have died in the line of duty, from illness due to the COVID-19 pandemic and from working at Ground Zero after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Family members and police officers laid a red carnation for each name read at the remembrance wall during the service outside the police fraternity’s Empire State Lodge at 911 Police Plaza. Trumpeters then played “Taps” to remember the fallen.

“Today we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice in law enforcement and also pay a very special tribute to the surviving families who have been left behind,” Fraternal Order president Michael Essig said. “This ceremony is to honor those who gave all, those who gave lives in the line of duty. They are heroes, not only because of how they died but how they lived. This memorial gives meaning to those lives and meaning to the law and what it stands for.”

The memorial wall lists 1,725 officers who have died on duty in New York State since 1889. The 40 names added Saturday died from 2019 to 2021 and were primarily NYPD officers, although officers from Yonkers, state police, Ulster County, Orange County and two from Suffolk County were added as well. Suffolk police Lt. Robert Van Zeyl and Sheriff’s Sgt. John Lowry both died in 2021 from complications of COVID-19.

Officials said 2021 showed a 55% increase in law enforcement deaths nationwide, compared with the year before. But police are hopeful that this year will see fewer deaths. Essig said the last two years took a toll on police who remained on duty during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although there have been 122 line of duty deaths to date this year nationwide, that is a 41% drop from last year on this day.

Cynthia Darini left a flower for her husband, George Darini, who was an NYPD officer in the Bronx for 25 years and died of illnesses related to working at Ground Zero.

Cynthia Darini said he was at the World Trade Center on 9/11 when the towers fell and worked for six months on the pile. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2016, which he battled for four years until he died on Oct. 22, 2020, leaving behind his wife and their son.

“He became ill from cancer from 9/11. He fought every day with grace and never complained. He was brave and strong. He was the love of my life,” she said. “He always wanted to be a police officer. … I want to support my husband and everyone who lost someone. They share that same bond and they deserve all of our love and support.”

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.