A Tiffy Taffy Highlight Story: Sometimes there are tales that are just too good, too beautiful, or too unbelievable to keep locked away. That’s why we scour the archives and bring some of them back to enjoy again. They may make you smile or shed a tear, but they’re always meant to add a little positivity to your day. Enjoy!
Lately, the public’s relationship with police officers has been a contentious topic. But, there are still stories that are testament to the heroic deeds of the men and women wearing the badge. Although the story is not recent, it still restores faith that there are good people out there.
The story dates back to 2014. The occasion was the wedding of 20-year-old Shammarah Hamidah, a beautiful young woman. However, apart from her family, her wedding featured a special guest of honor – then 63-year-old, New York police captain, Joe Barca.
He was not a relative, nor was he a family friend. Then, why was this police officer so special to the Hamidahs?
A Connection Spanning Two Decades
Well, the story of the connection between the two started on December 26th, 1993 – twenty years before the wedding date. Shammarah was only 2 months old at the time. Sergeant Joe (he wasn’t a captain then) was patrolling a couple of blocks away from the Hamidah house. That’s when he received a radio call stating that a baby apparently not breathing.
Read: Airline Didn’t Let Dad And Newborn On Plane, So Kind Stranger Took Them Home
Barca was the quickest police officer to turn up to help Shammarah’s panicking and frightened parents. When he took up Shammarah in her arms, the police officer recalled how the baby’s legs and arms were dangling, lifelessly.
In an interview with CBS, he said how he then took the baby to the back seat of his car to take her to the hospital. But he knew he had to do something. So he turned her over and slapped the baby’s back. That saved Sammarah’s life as the baby coughed up the mucus choking her. By the time they reached the hospital, she was breathing again and crying as loud as she could.
Barca still called the day the “highlight of his career”. According to Barca, he only did what his training told him to do. Shammarah was the first baby he had to perform CPR on.
This connection would remain for the rest of their lives.
Read: A good Samaritan jumped into water and saved a toddler who fell out of a car, authorities say
The Police Officer And The Young Lady
Twenty years down the line, Shammarah was engaged to marry Mohammed Salah, a truck driver. So she invited Joe Barca and Helen, his wife, to the ceremony. For Shammarah, the fact that he turned up was extremely meaningful.
In fact, Barca had stayed in touch with the Hammidahs over the years. He had become something like a second father to Shammarah. In the CBS interview, Shammarah explains how the Barcas would always wish him on her birthday. They would also send a Christmas gift and a cheque for Shammarah. They had never missed the occasions once during the two decades.
Here is the complete CBS coverage of the story:
Shammarah said she remembered that the first time she got to know of the police officer’s heroics was via an old recorded news video. As thankful as she is that Barca saved her life, she found it even more meaningful that he always stayed in touch.
Barca was more than willing to drive 14 hours to Chicago from New York to see the baby he had saved all grown-up. He also has three children of his own – one is a teacher while the other two are police officers. Barca was about to retire in January 2015, calling time on a 45-year-long career.
Shammarah, on her part, also wants to be someone like Barca and have the power to serve people. She had graduated from nursing school and had a promising nursing career in front of her.
There are some encounters that forever change our lives. Having a hero like police officer Joe Barca is one of the rarer encounters that can happen. However, it is touching to see them cherish each other even after such a long time. Perhaps, we can take a page out of their book and try harder to not lose contact with our loved ones.
Keep Reading: Woman Finds True Love with the Man Who Donated Her Half of His Liver & Saved Her Life
Sources
- “Bride’s special wedding guest: The cop who saved her life as infant.” Chicago Tribune. Alexandra Chachkevitch. August 16, 2014.
- “Yonkers Police Captain Attends Wedding Of Woman He Saved 20 Years Ago.” Youtube. CBS New York. August 14, 2014.
