St. Pete Police Officer Helps People Even When He's Off Duty
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FunTranscript
00:00We know the hard work and sacrifice they go through serving our community and keeping us safe.
00:06Let's honor another first responder on 99.5 QYK.
00:11We got Tamara on the phone today.
00:13We are honoring her husband, who is a police officer in St. Pete.
00:17Good morning, Tamara. How are you?
00:18Good morning. I'm well, thank you. How are you?
00:21We're doing great. So we get to talk about Josh today, who is a police officer.
00:24Let's talk about Josh. How long has he been on the job?
00:27What do you think drew him to this job?
00:29And tell me a little bit about his background before this job.
00:32Oh, yeah, sure. He's been with the department, oh, seven or eight years, I think.
00:36He got in actually a little bit later. He's always been hardworking.
00:40That's what I admire about him most. He's always wanted to provide for his family.
00:44He's worked two jobs, three jobs, whatever, you know, to provide for himself and his family.
00:50And, you know, he's always just had a passion for helping people.
00:54And, you know, when I met him, he was actually in school for firefighting.
00:58But he changed his path.
01:01And then after we got married and everything, that's when we really decided to look at the police scene.
01:07So we just thought it was time.
01:09And it's always been on his heart and his mind and his passion, just helping people.
01:14So, again, it's just the hardest working man I've ever known.
01:17He'll be the first one to pull over to help you push your car or help change a tire, pick up the tab for a military member that he sees in a restaurant or store.
01:25And he hates the acknowledgement.
01:26He hates receiving attention because he's just doing what he knows and feels is right.
01:31Yeah, you know, and a lot of people do.
01:33That's why we have someone else call like yourself to talk about them because we never would want them to talk about themselves because they don't want to do that for sure.
01:39Yes, yes, he hates it.
01:41So let me ask you this.
01:42And I don't want to get political with you, Tamara, by any means.
01:45And I don't want you to feel like you're put on the spot.
01:46But, you know, it is a hard and tricky job right now to be in law enforcement and a first responder in general.
01:53I mean, what do you think keeps him level-headed when it comes to this job?
01:56Because there's a lot of criticism out there.
01:58So what do you think helps him stay positive?
02:01There definitely is.
02:03You are right about that.
02:05You know, I hate to take credit, but I'd say his family for sure.
02:09We're there for him.
02:10I know, you know, our daughter puts, you know, a smile on his face and just brightens him up and brightens his day when he gets home after a rough day at work.
02:18And just hobbies that he has.
02:20He's a big NASCAR fan.
02:22Yeah.
02:22And big Corey LaJoy fan.
02:24That's who he wrote for for NASCAR.
02:26And his friends and just hanging out with some whiskey and a cigar.
02:31So he he doesn't take his work home.
02:33He doesn't really talk about it a whole lot.
02:35But I know the stress is there.
02:37I know the burden is there.
02:38But he has other outlets and working out and, you know, staying busy at home.
02:44My honeydew list.
02:45My honeydew list.
02:46Nice, Tamara.
02:46I love it.
02:47All right.
02:47Well, listen, we're so glad you reached out to us, Tamara.
02:50We love hearing these stories.
02:51And I love hearing a spouse brag about their other spouse and not just in the workplace, but also what they do at home.
02:57And this is really cool to learn about Josh.
02:58I just wanted to say that, you know, every day they see like the darkest and just the worst of the worst in our world.
03:04And if all you can ever do is say thank you to them or just a quick prayer, you know, it's reassuring as a spouse to know that other people are thinking about them and praying and hoping for his safety along with, you know, all the other men and women.
03:17Well, you are not alone in that, I'm sure, with a lot of spouses out there.
03:19So I would say absolutely, you got our prayers, no doubt about it.
03:24And we'd like to do this, Tamara.
03:25We'd like to give you $200 in Visa gift cards.
03:28Thanks to Crown Buick GMC and the Domestment and Dover Law Firm to give over to Josh or maybe it's something you guys can do together or as a family.
03:35And again, this is a small way for us to say thank you to Josh and to you because I know you make sacrifices as well.
03:41And nothing but love and prayers to you and your family.
03:44Oh, my gosh.
03:45That is wonderful.
03:47It's the least we can do.
03:48You guys deserve it.
03:49Thank you so much.
03:50I appreciate everything you guys do.
03:52They're great people serving our community and we want to hear about them.
03:55Please nominate them for First Responder Friday.
03:57You just go to 99.5QIK.com.
04:00Takes a couple minutes and we want to show them some love on the air.
04:02It's First Responder Friday.