My name is Jo-Ann VonRapacki, I have been married to the same man, George, for 36 years. We have one son, an only child, Keith, who was taken 4 months before his 30th birthday.

On May 12, 2003, the morning after Mother’s Day, George woke up at 6:30am to my son’s alarm going off. Keith was a police officer and was to begin his shift at 7am. When George went into Keith’s room, Keith could not be woken up. He yelled for me to call 911…Keith had passed away in his sleep. He had only been a police officer for 2 years and just 2 years earlier had gone through 6 months of extremely rigorous training plus a physical examination without any negative results. Three or four days prior to his passing, Keith was involved in a foot chase where he had to tackle a suspect to the ground which resulted in his feeling tired & weak through the few days leading up to his death. Keith was autopsied and found to have a heart condition called HCM (Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy) www.4hcm.org This is a genetic heart disease which causes thickening of the ventricle walls with lessening of the blood flow and is known as being the killer of young athletes who suffer sudden death. Actually, you don’t have to be an athlete to suffer sudden death. Keith was in good shape but he just went to bed.

We loved our son and so did the entire town. I have lived in Lyndhurst my entire life but only now do I appreciate what a loving community Lyndhurst is.

Keith was a wonderful, funny and caring man. This was demonstrated not only by the unbelievable tribute that was given him during his wake and funeral. There were hundreds of mourners and police officers from all over New Jersey plus Connecticut. People of every age and walk of life.

Parents are always proud of their child but little did we know that when Keith walked out our door each day he was doing something wonderful for everyone he touched. At his wake he was visited by everyone from his mechanic to the crew at the local Starbucks, the diner where he ate, all the UPS men in our area. We were approached by people he had helped in the line of duty who wanted to share how wonderful he was. We had everyone telling us stories of his kindness and of his sense of humor and most of all HIS SMILE....

A quick story of who he was…..One very cold cold winters night I was awakened at 3am by Keith sifting through a basket of socks which were waiting to be folded (Keith still lived home)….I asked him what the heck he was doing and he told me that he had a call that a man was drunk and sleeping on a bench at a bus stop. When he woke the man up he realized that he was just a homeless man looking to sleep and keep warm. Keith came home and gathered up long johns, a sweatshirt, socks..and even threw in a watch. He gave the man all of that plus $10 to get something to eat. Keith was so tickled to later see the man walking with a nice big cup of coffee and checking his watch. It warmed his heart. From what I was told by other officers, Keith had adopted that gentleman and he was seen walking past the funeral home during his wake.

There are so so many stories…so many that I felt that I would be missing so much that I should know about my son’s life, so I gathered up all the mailing addresses and email addresses of all our relatives, friends, Keith’s friends, acquaintances, businesses he frequented and classmates. I told them that because Keith was gone, we would never have that special reminiscing time….sharing of memories time…that families usually have. All of Keith’s memories left with him. I sent everyone a stamped, return addressed envelope and asked them to write down at least one memory they had of Keith…an experience or a favorite moment in time, and to please mail or email it to us, so we could learn more of Keith’s life. From this request, we were lucky to receive at least 100 responses. All beautiful, funny and very moving memories ranging from grammar school to the day before he died. All of this was proof of how wonderful a man he truly was.

There have been several fundraisers for The Keith VonRapacki Memorial Scholarship Fund, given by Mayor Guida, The LPD with the extraordinary work of Det. Mike Failace, and now by me and my husband George. A memorial banner had been put outside the Town Hall and my husband George and I have donated two park benches to the town, one in honor of the community Keith served and the other honoring the local Veterans who served their country.

The icing on the cake was when I was at work and visited by Lyndhurst Police Chief James O’Connor. At that time he awarded us with a pin, a new (mandatory) part of the uniform. It is a tie tack, a round pin of navy blue and white and in the center is Keith’s badge #097. This will be their guardian angel pin and will serve to keep Keith’s memory alive. Its purpose is to have people ask about it and to be followed by a response of Keith’s story, a very loving and respectful gesture.

Mayor James Guida has been another angel. He and his family have demonstrated so much love and respect for Keith. This entire community has proven to me and all of my family that there is no place like home and that one young, beautiful man can bring out the very best in everyone.

If by chance you have a memory of Keith that you can share with us, please email it to joannvr@aol.com. Thank you.