Next Thursday morning, Karl Strauss will be serving ice-cold beer at
their beer garden at the conclusion of our Fourth Annual Thanksgiving
morning 10K, 5K, and Kid's Fun Run in 4S Ranch, (register here). Karl has always been supportive of the community.
Ralph's will be providing water and granola bars and Jimbo's will be passing out awesome, organic fruit. All of them
That
being said, there is someone I love even more. His name is John "JJ"
Gener. He is unable to walk or run in this year's race, but in a
strange twist of fate, I hope he will be there to bring a sense of
confidence and push away the fears of our nine year old son, Ryan when
he stands up in front of the crowd of about fifteen hundred people to
sing our national anthem.
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JJ
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Helping people and bringing confidence to a fearful or dangerous situation is nothing new to
JJ. It was a short 30 years ago, when myself and many other rookie
cops, senior detectives, police dispatchers and countless other people
trusted JJ to do exactly the same thing.
In
law enforcement confidence and fortitude are contagious, but so is fear
and hesitation. With the first you have a winning hand while in the
second you are likely doomed to failure that could result in you being
carried by six of your fellow officers while taps are being played. Not
a good thing.
None
of us ever admitted we were scared on patrol, but I know I always felt
safer when I was at a radio call, crime scene or bar fight if JJ was
with us. We would frequently walk into locations where pimps,
prostitutes and drug addicts were all present. And they were actually
the "good people."
The
rest were street gang members, parolees, sexual deviants and bums.
Given the chance any of them would try to assault us. They never seemed
to try anything when JJ was around. He was
always so strong and quick, but more than that he had this confidence
that coursed through his veins. There was always a sense of toughness
and fairness in his DNA. I think evil people just knew he was not the
person to challenge.
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JJ with his favorite meal!
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Some
police departments have places in their cities that they simply do not
go. It was with a sense of pride that if we were ever told not to go
some place, we made a point of doing just that.
When
law enforcement surrenders even the smallest corner of our city out of
fear, we have lost the battle. JJ always knew that it is street cops and
detectives like him that even today help to keep us and our children
safe.
After an especially vicious night on the streets of San Diego we would often meet
at a small bar on the waterfront of San Diego Harbor, called
"Bernie's." Pitchers of cold beer flowed like pain killers for the
injured dispatchers, cops and detectives. JJ would walk into that
crowded bar with his Chicago swagger, tugging on the center of his
t-shirt as he followed up with a hearty laugh and a slap on our backs.
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John "JJ" Gener with his two sons,
(left to right) Bryan and Mike.
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We
all loved JJ's sense of humor and the way he looked at life. You had to
be careful because the night would sometimes be filled with hugs or
even a beer kiss or two on the cheek. It must have been something he
learned growing up on the south side of Chicago.
JJ
always made us all feel like we were his brother and the female
officers were his sisters. We knew he would always stand tall with us
and never flinch, even if we were facing the devil himself.
I think God must know how tough 
JJ
is and maybe that is why he saddled him with Lou Gehrig's disease. A
terrible disease with no apparent foe that ravishes both young and old
across this country and the world. A mysterious and fatal disease that
both the cause and cure are still unknown.
A
weaker man would have quit when a doctor told him he had ALS. We are so
proud of you JJ. You are working so hard to continue being a great
friend to so many, father to your two sons Bryan and Mike and husband to
Mary Ann.
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JJ and Me a long time ago. Yep it's Coors light. I don't know what I was thinking.
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I hope you feel well enough to come to the race next week.
Even
if you don't, I know when Ryan grabs the microphone I will be thinking
about you and saying a little prayer. A prayer for a man that has
always put others before himself and lead the charge.
Hang
in there JJ. You are not alone in your battle against ALS. And though
you may not hear from many of your police family we are still here to
provide cover for you. Just like you did for all of us, so many years
ago.
If
you miss the Thank You Run, be sure to sign up for an ALS fundraiser
to help JJ and his family on Sunday, December 15 at the Vineyard Golf
Course in Escondido. See the below link.
Enjoy your week,
Ray and Theresa Shay
2013 - All Rights Reserved
