The L.A. County Sheriff's Department paid its last respects Friday in downtown L.A. to Deputy Gonzalo Galvez, a beloved 24-year veteran of the department who lost his battle with cancer earlier this month.
KNX News' Karen Adams reported that LASD vehicles lined the street outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, and two ladder trucks hung an American flag at the intersection of Temple and Grand to show honor and respect to Deputy Galvez.
Kind, caring, funny, and fearless - just some of the words used by loved ones to describe Deputy Galvez at the cathedral.
His brother Guillermo Galvez remembered him as a person who never gave up; a jokester but also loving and caring.
"There were times where he would drive me to school after a long shift he had worked just because I missed my bus," said Guillermo through tears. "Accompanying me to my Pop Warner football practices, teaching me how to swim at the beach. He was like a second father to me, a mentor I could turn to whenever I needed guidance."
Sheriff Robert Luna spoke of Galvez's illustrious career as a tactical pilot and paramedic, saying, "He was a two-time Medal of Valor recipient, both times risking his own life, executing successful hostage rescues. He saved other people's lives."
Sheriff Luna said, "14 of [Galvez's] professional commendations came directly from community members. These included one from a woman that he and his partner arrested in appreciation for being so professional, despite the fact that she was not only intoxicated but also belligerent."
In addition to being an outstanding member of the LASD, Galvez was also an exceptional athlete as a junior Olympian and Golden Gloves boxer. He also boxed in the army and on the L.A. County Sheriff's Department team, winning a silver medal at the Police Games.
Luna said, if he could, he would clone the 47-year-old husband and father of three—the perfect deputy.
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