PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Three years and a day after Police Sgt. Richard Mendez was shot in the line of duty at Philadelphia International Airport, a new bronze plaque in the parking garage where he died now hangs in his honor.
His widow, Alex Carrero-Mendez, spoke at the plaque unveiling.
“Sometimes just being in your own space, alone. You feel like he has been forgotten,” she said. “But then you guys show me that he hasn’t; with your presence, you are always there for us.”
“This work matters and his life matters, and that’s why it’s so important that we say we will never forget,” said Commissioner Kevin Bethel.
Sitting in support of the Mendez family were the widows of other fallen police officers. At the top of their minds was a woman who will now join them: the widow of Shane Seiber, who was shot and killed over the weekend in West Philadelphia.
“They turn their pain into purpose by supporting each other,” Bethel added. “We’ll get through this together.”
