EXCLUSIVE: Slain NYPD hero Rafael Ramos lives on through his wife a year after his death
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Wednesday, December 16, 2015, 4:00 AM
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Black-and-white photos of slain NYPD Officer Rafael Ramos smiling on a beach with his two boys and embracing his wife decorate the family living room.
They’re mementos of the Officer Ramos few people saw.
But now his widow, Maritza Ramos, said she’s ready to tell the world about her fallen husband.
In her first extensive interview since her husband’s tragic death, Ramos said she wants to keep his memory alive with the creation of the Detective Rafael Ramos Foundation.
Officers Ramos and Wenjian Liu were executed Dec. 20 by a career criminal who drove from Baltimore on a twisted mission to avenge the deaths of Staten Island dad Eric Garner and Ferguson, Mo., teen Michael Brown.
DEBBIE EGAN-CHIN/NEW YORK DAILY NEWSMaritza Ramos is keeping the memory of her slain cop husband alive through the Detective Rafael Ramos Foundation, which will further relations between the police and the community.
Maritza Ramos said the foundation will strive to improve relations between the community and the police.
“My husband loved to work with the community. He loved giving back, and I just felt like that’s a great way to honor him,” Ramos said.
“Our mission is to help build a relationship between the community and the police.”
Ramos said the recent spate of videos showing scenes of police brutality can make people forget the good work of good cops.
“Unfortunately, there are a few bad apples. It kind of overshadows all the good officers that we have,” she said.
She said she wants to focus on the human side of police officers, and spotlight what drives them into such a potentially dangerous career.
“I don’t think you become an officer because the pay is great. It’s just something that you have in your heart,” she said.
Most officers, like her husband, really believe in the oath they take to protect and serve, she said.
“That’s the reason my husband became a cop. It’s something he always wanted to do and I think he was great at it,” she said.
Sitting in the family room of her Bushwick home, she smiled as she looked at photos of her family’s idyllic 2010 vacation in the Caribbean.
DEBBIE EGAN-CHIN/NEW YORK DAILY NEWSThr Ramos and their sons Justin and Jaden. NYPD Officer Rafael Ramos was killed in the line of duty on Dec. 20, 2014.
The past year has been challenging for her and her two teenage boys, Justin and Jaden.
“Not every day is a good day. We have bad days. We choose to push forward,” she said.
A few months after her husband died, she got the family a new pet — a toy-sized, fluffy white dog. When she got the dog’s registration, she realized the puppy was born the day her husband died.
“We couldn't believe it,” she said. “It felt like a surprise from heaven. He went to heaven the day she was born. It felt like a sign, so Jaden named her Heaven. Heaven is always with us.”
The foundation will host its first fund-raising event Jan. 28.
Police Commissioner Bill Bratton and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani are expected to attend, Ramos said.
With John Annese
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