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• WHITESTONE TIMES
Oct. 29 - Nov. 4, 2021
A WALKOUT TO REMEMBER
Seven-year-old honorary NYPD cop discharged from hospital in Queens to cheers of real offi cers
BY DEAN MOSES
Anthony Rojas has lived
much of his young life at St.
Mary’s Hospital for Children
in Bayside after being admitted
for chronic respiratory failure,
bronchiolitis obliterans, in 2017
due to a rare genetic mutation
that caused abnormal cell
growth scarring his lungs and
making it difficult for him to
breath.
During his stay, the outcome
often appeared rather
bleak for Rojas, but there is one
thing his mother said kept him
strong — becoming an honorary
NYPD officer.
On Oct. 21, the lad got his
wish when the NYPD gave him
honorary cop status. And like
any cop recovering from injury
in the line of duty, Rojas was
discharged from St. Mary’s to
the applause of a crowd of New
York’s Finest — a heroic end to
a grueling four-year journey.
In 2018, the then-4-year-old
Rojas joined the NYPD’s HOPE
Program, an initiative that
allows children living with
severe and even terminal illnesses
to spend their days as
New York’s Finest. He got to
inspecting iconic landmarks
such as the Empire State Building,
visit the Joint Operations
Center, go on patrol with the
K-9 unit or ride boats with the
NYPD Harbor Unit.
As time wore on, the diagnosis
Anthony Rojas says goodbye to the friends he made after his near four-year stay at the medical facility.
seemed to indicate Rojas’
only path to recovery would
require a double lung transplant.
Incredibly, however, his
condition stabilized following
numerous infusion treatments
and intensive therapies. His
condition progressed to the
point that he was finally able to
go home after four years in the
Bayside hospital.
As a symbolic member of
the Police Department, who
wore his uniform and clung
to his badge while facing the
worst of his illness, the NYPD
gave Rojas a hero’s salute as he
left the hospital.
The legion of NYPD officers
lined up outside Saint Mary’s
Hospital for Children in Bayside
just before noon, including members
of the K-9 Unit, Bomb Squad,
Community Affairs and others.
As Rojas emerged, he received
thunderous applause from hundreds
of uniformed officers and
even a got to enjoy a flyover from
Photo by Dean Moses
an NYPD helicopter.
“I want to thank all the
staff,” Rojas’ mother, Lucy
Ramirez, said. “This is a new
beginning. Thank you to all
of St. Mary’s staff because of
the wonderful job they’ve done
with him. We leave here with a
world of happy. Thank you.”
Hospital staff stated that
Rojas has made such a remarkable
recovery that once he has
settled at home, he could even
start school.
Yet before all that, the
7-year-old was showered with
gifts from the Police Department.
He got to pet department
canines and horses, and even
had the opportunity to control
a bomb disposal robot before
being whisked into a squad
car and sped home via a police
escort.
For Detective Anthony Passaro,
it was an emotional day
after years working with Rojas
in the HOPE program.
“It’s the most incredible feeling
in the whole entire world,”
Passaro said thinking back to
2018.
Passaro, who shares a
namesake with Rojas, described
the journey as moving
and life-altering.
“He’s had many ups and
downs over the years as he
was initially on the transplant
list for two new lungs,
but then became too sick for
the transplant he so desperately
needed,” Passaro said.
“No one on his care team nor
in his family ever thought a
discharge like this would be
possible. Anthony is heading
home thanks to his hard work
and the devotion of his family,
team of nurses, therapists and
medical team at St. Mary’s.
Everyone is thrilled for him
because he will benefit greatly
from being in the community
and attending a school like
a regular kid.”
Vol. 87 No. 44 52 total pages
YU-CHING PAI (James)
for CITY COUNCIL 20