The Voice of New Rochelle: The Price of Public Service

It was the face of young Kevin Townes Jr. on the front cover of the Journal News that caught my attention and darkened my soul. Townes Jr., the son of Mount Vernon firefighter Kevin Townes, who died last week fighting a house fire, was holding his mother’s hand as the two were escorted into Grace Baptist Church for the funeral. 

The 12-year-old boy’s face was a portrait of sadness and pain. One look at him told you all you needed to know. He will never see his father again. There will be no more football games or trips to the park. Nor will they watch games together on television like they once did. His father will never again pick him up from school or talk with him about what it means to be a man. And worst of all, the unconditional love and sense of security that only a parent can give are now lost forever for Kevin Townes Jr.   

What a terrible price to pay. 

In New York City, police officer Peter Figoski, the father of four high school and college-aged girls, was shot and killed responding to a home break in. In an instant, this breadwinner, this giver and object of familial love, this man who was to pay for the girls’ college tuition and one day give them away at the altar, is no more.    

What a terrible price to pay. 

In the last decade, the pendulum has taken some curious swings. In the wake of 9/11, the general public, enlightened to the sacrifices of the hundreds of uniformed men and women who “went in when everyone else was coming out,” heaped endless praise on these brave souls. Action figure toys of police officers and firefighters were hastily made and scooped up in stores. For years, absolutely no one in or out of the public eye could or would say a bad word about this new hero class. It might have even become, as eventually all hero worship does, a bit much. But it was genuine and justified. 

More recently, some of our local uniformed men and women have been under fire for pension padding, others for ticket fixing. That’s fair game, of course. But the last time I checked, the beings wearing those uniforms were of the human variety and, like the rest of us, do things we wish we did not do, or fall victim to selfishness and ego. 

In some communities, still other men and women in public service are taking heat simply for costing tax payers money. Well, it says here that it is money well spent. 

It is often said in the context of the national immigration debate that some people come to this country to do jobs no one else wants to do. Well, police officers and firefighters, who live right here among us, do jobs most of us don’t want to do but need badly to be done. And, they take the risks not many of us want to take. Moreover, they are prepared to take the consequences, come what may. 

The expression on the face of Kevin Townes Jr. is all you will ever need to know about the value of our uniformed public servants.  

If you would like to help the childen of the two men, the information is as follows: Peter Figoski Scholarship Fund, c/o NY Police Foundation, 555 Fifth AVe., 15th Floor, New York, NY 10017; www.nycpolicefoundation.org. For Kevin Townes, Mount Vernon Fallen Fire Fighter Fund, P.O. Box 2085, Mount Vernon, NY 10551.