By Anna Bedell
While inside the police station, it was difficult not to get emotional after seeing the “last call” wooden flag, among the many badges and memorabilia from all over Connecticut.
We had just been outside the station, where a Bristol police cruiser sat silently under a blanket of flowers, balloons, scribbled notes, cards, candles, toys, t-shirts and badges–an homage to the fallen officers Lt. Dustin Demonte, 35, and Sgt. Alex Hamzy, 34, and Officer Alec Iurato, 26, who is recovering from injuries sustained in the incident that took his fellow police officers.
TBE photographer Laura Bailey and I had been driving around on this chilly night, glimpsing the blue lights and Halloween displays on our way to a particular display that is a memorial to the fallen officer.
We drove past St. Joseph Church, a beacon in blue, with its carved statues darkened in the shadows.
Passing through Federal Hill, we passed other displays on our way to Rosewood Drive in the Northeast section of town.
“Every night a crowd of people show up,” said Rob Osenkowski, who with Lori, his wife, set up the memorial.
“Even when they’re just blue with no music just to come and have a place to get together and talk,” he said, “just have a moment by yourself to kind of think about everything that happened.”
The entire house is lit up in blue, silent, synced after every fourth song playing on the radio.
“We started out small about 12 years ago, and now we just keep growing every year, as we add a little bit more,” said Osenkowski. “It means a lot, it’s something that we were happy to do for the community.”
Osenkowski said his wife and her sister grew up in Bristol and knew Sgt. Hamzy.
“We had an issue four years ago at a family’s house and they called Alex to the house,” he said.
“He was so great with the kids, to come out and let them play with the car. We always call him the officer who smiles all the time.”
Osenkowski said that he just saw Hamzy a week before at the Mum Festival parade.
We watched as people showed up in their cars to see the dancing skeletons, the werewolf guarding the house and the witch watching over the neighborhood from the roof.
People, now on foot, stood in front of the house for a closer look.
And then, as quietly as they arrived, one by one the people and cars dwindled, leaving us and the house slowly, reluctantly even.
Driving home, we were uncharacteristically quiet ourselves, the silence itself, carrying in it a sobriety that is seldom associated with Halloween.
Editor’s note: Search Facebook for “Lights on Rosewood.”
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All TBE readers, supporters and donors
The Bristol Edition will be limiting the number of stories non-members and free readers may access each week. This decision is based on our financial projections and, most certainly, to remind people that TBE is serious about providing accurate, timely and thorough reporting for Bristol. To do this we have devised a financial support structure that makes unlimited access extremely affordable, beginning with a $6 monthly donation.
- Non-members will be able to access eight (8) articles per week.
- Free readers and people who have subscribed by email will be able to access eight (8) articles per week.
- Donors and financial supporters will have unlimited access as long as they log in.
Note: Donors may have to contact TBE if they find they are being limited, since we will need to set up a membership account for you. Email editor@bristoledition.org for instructions. Sorry for any inconvenience. People with financial difficulties may write editor@bristoledition.org to be considered for free access.