Raymond Burke
Patrolman
New York City Transit Police Department
My Father’s Badge[/caption]This is a story about my father, Raymond J. Burke, Sr. Prior to serving as a NY City Transit Police Officer he served his country in the United States Air Force for approximately 10 years from 1954-1964. After an Honorable Discharge he began his career in law enforcement from 1965-1986. He was known by his peers to be one of the hardest working individuals they knew. They say although he was a cross between Dirty (Clint Eastwood) Harry and The Rifleman (Chuck Connor) he was a supportive peer/partner who cared about all those he worked with and for.
As his son, I saw that he loved his country, THE USA, without question. He instilled that in myself, my brothers and all those he came in contact with. He taught and instilled the traits of working hard, being proud, maintaining integrity and being dedicated to those we serve and particularly family and friends. His greatest quality from my perspective was his Loyalty to everyone around regardless of his personal feelings about any individual. He was there to protect and serve without prejudice. The GREATEST compliment I can give is that if you look up the words, Pride, Integrity, Dedication, Loyalty and Hard-Working in the dictionary you would simply find my father’s photo. His peers and friends have all agreed. In his peer’s words, “He was a Cop’s Cop.”
