Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Delivers Remarks at Funeral Service of Police Officer Rafael Ramos

December 27, 2014

Video available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqrCXlnINgE



Mayor Bill de Blasio: Pastor Durso – to you and to your father, Pastor Durso – thank you for this extraordinary congregation, which has meant so much to the Ramos family. And thank you for the love here today.

Vice President, it is so important to the people of New York City, and to the Ramos family, and so many others, that you're here. Thank you for helping us to heal at this painful moment.

Governor, senator, commissioner – thank you all.

Our hearts are aching today. We feel it physically. We feel it deeply. New York City has lost a hero – a remarkable man because of the depths of his commitment to all around him.

On behalf of all 8.4 million New Yorkers – on behalf of all of us – I extend my condolences, to Maritza, to Justin and Jaden, to Julia, to Cindy; to the entire family, the wonderful, beautiful extended family that we've all come to know in these days; and to all their friends, all who loved them.

I extend my condolences to another family – the family of the NYPD that is hurting so deeply right now, men and women feeling this loss so personally, so deeply, as their families feel the loss as well.

And I want to thank the officers, the law enforcement officers from all over this nation, who have come her to honor Officer Ramos. I especially want to thank the family of Officer Liu – who are here in solidarity, and in shared grief – two families we will remember together always.

All of this city is grieving. And grieving for so many reasons, but the most personal is that we've lost such a good man, and a family is in such pain.

Officer Rafael Ramos was a man so filled with commitment, faith, belief. You can see in his family. You can see what kind of parent he was, what kind of husband he was, what kind of son he was – what it meant to his family. Because a family so strong is a result of that kind of love and commitment.

To Maritza, the love of his life and the partner in all things – we honor you. We honor his two sons, who he adored. Justin, we thank you for feeling the same calling to public service that motivated your father. Jaden, we thank you for what you've already said to this world, even at your young age – and it meant so much to so many people, and we thank you for what you said simply about your dad. You said, "He was the best father I could ask for." And every child should be so blessed as to be able to say that. And every parent should be so blessed as to be able to hear that from their child.

It's well known that Officer Ramos loved this family so deeply, and cherished the moments with them, and yes – they are Mets fans. God bless them. And he loved playing basketball with his sons in Highland Park. He loved blasting Spanish gospel music from his car. He lived life so deeply.

This family has shown us so much in these last days, and has given us so much hope, even amidst the pain – because you epitomize the family of New York. You epitomize all we aspire to be. You have been there together from the most difficult, painful moment – and those moments in the hospital, to now, filled with strength, filled with connection, filled with devotion to each other. It's something we all need to remember.

And Officer Ramos was profoundly a man of faith. So much of his life centered on this beautiful church, this church family. He embraced a powerful idea – if your way isn't working, try God's way. He spent the last 10 weeks of his life studying to be a chaplain. And he was taken from us on the day he was to graduate. It says so much that he wanted to serve people spiritually. He was already serving in so many ways, and yet, he felt deeply called to serve spiritually as well. And he was thinking about that service – even in the years after he would leave the force – that he would continue to serve as a spiritual mentor and leader.

And he was so committed to the NYPD. It meant so much to him to be a member of the finest police force in this country. He always wanted to join the NYPD. It wasn't his first career. He started out as a school safety officer, protecting our kids, and he was much loved in that role. He had a dream that he would one day be a police officer, and he worked for that dream, and he lived it, and he became it. He couldn't wait to take that test. He couldn't wait to put on that uniform.

He believed in protecting others, and those who are called to protect others are a special breed. Those who stare down danger, those who sacrifice for all of us – that's what he wanted to be. He wanted to be someone who gave more, someone who would take risks that so many others would find unimaginable. He wanted to reach higher in service to others.

All of his brothers and sisters in the NYPD feel his loss, because they too followed that journey to serve others. They too accepted those risks. And they persevere despite the pain. And for that, we are eternally thankful.

One of the most beautiful passages in the bible is also one of the simplest, from the Sermon on the Mount – "Blessed are the peacemakers." That could have been said with Officer Ramos in mind. He was a peacemaker in every sense. Throughout his life, he was a man of peace, a man of love. He was a peacemaker in his large family, always bringing people together. He was a peacemaker in his church, working every day to spread a message of faith and love – helping others through their challenges, helping other families through their struggles. And he was a peacemaker for the city of New York.

Police officers are called "peace officers," because that's what they do – they keep the peace. They help make a place that otherwise would be torn with strife a place of peace. Officer Ramos put his life on the line every day so other New Yorkers could live in peace, so they could live in safety. That's what he believed in.

His life was tragically cut short, but his memory will live on in the hearts of his family, his congregation, his brothers and sisters of the NYPD, and literally millions of New Yorkers.

We will not forget.

I just want to say a very few words in Spanish.

Nueva York está de luto por la muerte de uno de sus mejores hijos, Rafael Ramos.

Rafael Ramos era un padre y esposo amoroso, un hombre de mucha fe, y un valiente policía que murió mientras trabajaba en mantener a nuestra ciudad segura.

Qué en paz descanse su sacrificio no será olvidado.

We will always remember him. May he rest in peace. God bless you all.