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He was hailed as a hero and light for the city of Chicago, but the most moving tribute to Saturday's funeral for the deceased policeman Eduardo Marmolejo came from his eldest daughter.
"Hello Dad, I miss you so much," said Rebeca Marmolejo, moved to tears, at the chapel of the Sainte-Rita shrine in Cascia, where a service had been organized a day earlier for Marmolejo's partner, Agent Conrad Gary. The two men were beaten and killed by a train while they were pursuing a suspect Monday in an area near 103rd Street and Dauphin Avenue, in the extreme south of the coast.
"I have so much to say and there is no more time," Rebeca, 15, told me. "Not hugging you or seeing you breaks my heart in a million pieces, you've always trusted me, and that has allowed me to continue.
" Now that you've arrived, It's my turn to cover this change, "She continued, struggling not to cry.
" He's learned that the smallest actions have the greatest impact, "said Rebeca, concluding his remarks in front of a crowded church calling everyone "to be kind and live without regrets."
The crowd responded with a standing ovation.
Eduardo Marmolejo, Chicago police officer, struck and killed by the train, is recalled as a father of three children who served others "
Previously, the Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson remembered Marmolejo, also known as" Lalo " ", as of a" humble man "who had put himself" in danger to protect us all ". [19659009] "Modest people are giants," adding that "Eduardo was an exemplary officer," including "altruism and sense of duty rly this week. "
Addressing the two other girls of Rebeca and Marmolejo, Johnson promised," We will begin to heal with you. … you are not alone.
"Your father was a hero," Johnson said. "Know that he's looking down … you're going to have an entire department like your siblings."
Johnson also notes Marmolejo's experience as an emergency room technician at the Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and how he received it. several rewards from the police department while he was a policeman in Chicago for only two and a half years. Marmolejo had already received four honorable mentions, a fitness award and a commendation.
The Superintendent burst out laughing at Marmolejo's sense of childlike humor, describing videos that he would shoot from his dog – a mixture of pit bull named Champ – and sent to his wife , to his brothers and sisters and to other members of his family.
"Lalo was so impressed by Champ that every day," said Johnson, "this video was a video of Champ every day. poop. "
But Johnson's tone became darker when he addressed colleagues at Marmolejo in Calumet District where the officer had been assigned. Marmolejo and Gary are among the five officers who died this year while working in the district. Two other police officers committed suicide and another after collapsing at the district police station.
"The year has been particularly difficult for you," Johnson said. "But just be aware that every time you leave the parking lot at 727 E. 111th St., agents Marmolejo and Gary will accompany you."
Mayor Rahm Emanuel, following Johnson on the podium, said memory. Marmolejo "has the power to enlighten the city … He has become a hero of the city."
In high school, Marmolejo meets his future wife, Maria, who took his place Saturday at the front of the church. a widow.
"He was the kind of husband who would send flowers, just because," said Emanuel, speaking as much as the couple's enduring love for each other.
Marmolejo also learned how to make his daughters hair so that he could help them get ready for school on the days his wife was working early, said Emanuel, who did not know Marmolejo personally .
Agent Andres Lizarzaburo met with Marmolejo while they were recruited at the police academy in Marmolejo. got the nickname "Sarge" because he always offered advice and tried
Marmolejo was humble with a sense of humor "incomparable", and even after the academy, he remained the model to follow from Lizarzaburo.
"He was what we all aspire to be when we have our own family and our own children," said Lizarzaburo, "You were my boy, you were my big brother I never had The brother I could admire. "
Buttons with a photo of Marmolejo shone like little bright beacons pinned on the chest of each officer as the sun was reflected on the rows of men and women lined up to offer a final salute to the coffin bearing the body of Marmolejo was again placed in the hearse and carried away.
Before the funeral, which gathered more than 2,000 people in mourning, officers were greeted and family members hung on, some crying silently, as the hearse Marnolejo's body arrived at the scene. Southwest Side Church around 11 am
"Officers, watch out," shouted a commander.
Marmolejo, 36, and Gary, 31, is one of the four Chicago policemen killed in the lne of duty this year. Samuel Jimenez, 28, was shot dead on November 19 at the Mercy Hospital and Medical Center on the south side. Cmdr. Paul Bauer, 53, was shot and killed while pursuing a suspect outside the Thompson Center in the Loop on Feb. 13.
Brendan Kiefer, a good friend of Marmolejo, also told stories to bereaved people who grew up They worked together in their teenage years at a Brown & Chicken restaurant, located at 61st Street and Pulaski Road, and they were "young and extremely stupid", especially once when they went to a party in the suburbs. with "open containers", a term commonly used for alcohol, in his car, said Kiefer. All of her friends, including Kiefer, initially thought that Marmolejo was going to jail and needed help to be released. Instead, Marmolejo went to the party a little later, relieving all his friends.
When everyone asked him how he managed to get out of trouble, Marmolejo's reaction caused an intense laugh within the church: I just told this sad story and told them that everything what I wanted was to be a policeman.
Kiefer laughed even more when he remembered that Marmolejo "managed to win the costume contest at his own Halloween party. "
The funeral ended with the bagpipe interpretation of" Amazing Grace "in front of the church as the mourning officers lined up and saluted. A bugle also performed percussion, which is also performed at military funerals, and cars lined up for about a block along 77th Street during a procession for the hearse, en route to the cemetery.
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