One by one, family, friends and colleagues shared moving stories at the funeral of Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca, each revealing a beautiful tribute to the man they knew – the man he was both with and without his badge.
Huesca was shot and killed while walking home from a shift earlier this month in a tragic incident that struck Chicago.
Speaking to a packed church filled with law enforcement, parents and more, Huesca’s partner, brother, best friends and co-workers each remembered him as a “big kid” with good heart, family oriented and loved to travel.
“When I first heard the tragic news, I really struggled to find the words to describe (Luis) to those who did not have the privilege of meeting him. But I kept coming back to the expression “take off your shirt. Because that’s exactly what Luis was. He was the kind of man who would do everything possible to help others no matter what,” said his friend Karim Ismat.
Huesca, a six-year veteran of the force, was just two days shy of his 31st birthday.st anniversary when he was shot April 21 in the 3100 block of West 56th Street. Police have issued an arrest warrant for Xavier Tate Jr., 22, who is wanted for the murder.
In their stories of Huesca, many remembered his love of adventure.
“Luis would sometimes take me to the most random places in the United States or outside of here,” said his brother Emiliano Huesca Jr.. “And he would say, ‘Let’s go to this place,’ you’d watch movies. cards, and he’ll say, “Let’s go to this place and see if we can find anything interesting. “And I was worried that…we were going to remote places with no cell signal or anything, I always thought, ‘Oh my God, what happens if we get lost or something ?But Luis always knew how to find a path and Luis was always brave to go into the forest.
Karim Ismat recalls the adventures and memories he shared with his best friend, fallen officer Luis Huesca.io
But even during his travels, Huesca often found a way to help others.
“One time we were crossing North Africa and an accident happened right in front of us. The first thing Luis did was exchange badges with Moroccan cops. He put on a Moroccan badge and immediately left. “I have to take care of the lady who fell off her motorcycle,” Huesca Jr. said. “Then he started delegating as much as possible with his broken Arabic. Saying to people, ‘Can you have some water? Can you get the towel to rest the lady’s head on?’ And then, once the situation was under control, he began directing traffic. So even though he wasn’t in Chicago, he was still doing his duty as a police officer there. »
Officer Luis Huesca’s brother, Emiliano Huesca Jr., reads a note he wrote about the lessons he learned from his brother and shares some of his favorite moments spent with his brother.
Among the stories shared were memories of Huesca spending family events with her godson or nieces and nephews, helping her friends through unimaginable losses, caring for others’ loved ones when they couldn’t, or showcasing her humor.
Amid the long list of speakers who paid tribute was officer Lucia Chávez, who was a close friend and classmate of Huesca and another fallen officer, Andrés Vásquez-Lasso, who was barely killed 13 months earlier while responding to a domestic attack. disturbance call.
“I lost Andrés and now Luis,” Chávez said. “I lost my two classmates, my best friends, my brothers. The violence in this city took them from me, from us.”
Notably absent from the crowd were Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.
Johnson issued a statement Monday morning as he updated his public schedule to remove funerals from his itinerary.
“We continue to extend our deepest condolences to the family and colleagues of Officer Luis Huesca as they recover from the loss of their beloved son, nephew, brother and friend,” Johnson said in a communicated. “As Mayor, I am committed to continuing to support our police and first responders, uniting our city and remaining committed to working with everyone to build a better, stronger and safer Chicago. My heart is with the Huesca family today. God bless them and God bless you.
Officer Christian Calderón remembers his partner and close friend, Officer Luis Huesca.
The last-minute change came after multiple sources told NBC Chicago that Huesca’s family had asked Johnson not to come.
Illinois State Comptroller Susana Mendoza said Huesca’s “distressed mother” asked her and another state official to tell Johnson “that he doesn’t was not welcome at his son’s funeral.
Some at the funeral stressed that the lack of justice in Huesca’s murder had prevented them from moving on, while remaining confident that an arrest would be made.
But in the end, it was Huesca’s character who took center stage.
“Luis, your nickname should be Lionheart. You are an exceptional person with courage, bravery, community, humility and pride in your work,” Huesca Jr. said, reciting a letter which he wrote to his late brother. “And you have devotion to those you touch, rest in peace, my brother, and I love you.”
NBC Chicago
