Photo: Worcester Police
WORCESTER, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Jennifer Familia says every day is a struggle. The widow of Worcester Police Officer Enmanuel Familia spoke out on Thursday in an emotional video for the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association and the Manny 267 Foundation.
Familia died on June 4 after diving into the water at Worcester's Green Hill Pond to try to save 14-year-old Virginia teenager Troy Love, who also died that day.
Familia said she was called to the pond by her late husband's cousin. She said that as she waited for news at the hospital that day, "...All I could think about was, what am I gonna tell my kids? What am I going to tell them?" She also said she asked herself what she would tell her mother-in-law. "This is going to break her," she said she remembers thinking.
Familia said her husband joined the force because he loved the city of Worcester and wanted to make a difference. The video is the first in a two-part series, which introduces the Manny 267 Foundation, started by Familia's family. The foundation wants to donate floating "rescue tubes" to all police cruisers in Worcester, and eventually all police departments nationwide.
The foundation also wants to train officers to perform water rescues, starting with Worcester.
WBZ's Chris Fama (@CFamaWBZ) reports:
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