11 Years of Milestones

Police and Fire: The Fallen Heroes was founded eleven years ago when Oakland Police Sergeants Mark Dunakin, Ervin Romans, Daniel Sakai and Motor Officer John Hege were senselessly killed in the line of duty. Their sacrifice and legacy carry on in our Mission Statement: 

"Our families and communities are safe because of the sacrifices made by first responders and their families.  We honor Peace Officers and Firefighters who make the ultimate sacrifice during the performance of their duties and offer lasting emotional and financial support to the families and agencies left behind."

The first milestone of our journey occurred on July 1, 2009 when we officially became a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.  That event was followed by many more significant ‘firsts’:

• April 2010: Tribute Golf Tournament for the four fallen OPD Officers with $40,000 going to their families
• March 2011: Oakland Raiders Partnership and Tribute Game dedicated to First Responders
• May 2012: Our first donation to the Scholarship Fund - $10,000 From Clint Eastwood
• September 2012: Over $26,000 presented to fallen CHP Officer Youngstrom’s Family
• June 2013: First scholarships awarded to 3 children of Fallen Heroes
• July 2015: Famous Dave’s BBQ partnership for Hayward Sgt. Lunger Family Fund
• February 2016: Established our ‘Help for Heroes Fund’
• August 2018: California Pizza Kitchen partnership for Long Beach Fire Capt. Rosa Family Fund
• June 2019: Officially registered as a nonprofit in The State of Nevada

Over the past eleven years and through our two major programs, Help For Heroes and our Scholarship Fund, we’ve been able to award 65 scholarships and give over $500,000 in aid to families and agencies who have lost a beloved hero in the line of duty. And this is just the beginning! We want to do more, with your help. We look forward to your future involvement, which as you can see, directly benefits the families of those heroes who have sacrificed so much for our safety. 

Thomas D. Gallinatti

CEO

5 Years & Growing

 For any non-profit, or business, the fifth-year of existence is a true milestone.  Looking over our five years of growth and development, the ability of Police and Fire: The Fallen Heroes to honor, support, assist and memorialize our Fallen Heroes and/or their families has seen tremendous growth.   Our initial dream was simply to honor and pay tribute to all Peace Officers and Firefighters that died in the line of duty in California.  Since our formation in 2009, however, we’ve accomplished so much more. 

We have not only honored the service of 21

Peace Officers and 14 Firefighters that died in the line of duty, but have also given thousands in financial aid to their families, posted many memorial banners in tribute and assisted agencies and families with memorial service needs.

     This has been our way of saying thank you for the service of these men and women who died while protecting our communities.

     None of our accomplishments or ability to assist would be possible, however, without all of you, our partners, volunteers and supporters!  Our philosophy is this: These HEROES protect our communities 24/7.  When one of them pays the ultimate sacrifice, it is our duty, as Americans, to step forward as a community, in show of solidarity and support, to those agencies and families that have lost so much.

     Our organization is able to respond to the immediate needs that come when there is a Line of Duty Death incident.  Our resources and personnel do have limits, however, and we need YOU!!!  Whether it is the power of corporate America, the mass reach of Professional Sports or the citizens of our local neighborhoods, EVERYONE plays an important role in supporting our Fallen Heroes.

     Thank you for your continued support and being part of our “TEAM”!

Danville 4th of July Parade 2013

Yesterday was a great day for Police and Fire: The Fallen Heroes.  This was our first time in the Danville 4th of July Parade.  We were fortunate to have been sponsored by Mr. John Lineweaver and Stone Valley Plaza.  Part of our Team included, United States Trooper of The Year, CHP Officer Tyler Carlton, Firefighter of the Year for San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District, (recently retired) Battalion Chief Mike Picard, Retired Oakland Raider Super Bowl Champ, Art Thoms and our long time supporter, Rocker Johnny Gunn. Thanks to all and to Car West Auto Body for the amazing donation of vehicles and auto wraps.  WOW...  Craig, Rob and Amanda, you are all the best...



As provided by Car West Auto Body, two 2013 Ford Mustangs.
Check out the extensive body wrap Car West did for us...



United States Trooper of the Year, CHP Officer Tyler Carlton

Jeffrey Gallinatt with Tom in our Fallen Heroes Golf Cart
as done by Car West Auto Body

 

Oakland Raider Great, Art Thoms and Rocker Johnny Gunn.
Our Celebrity Ambassadors.  They have been with us from the beginning.

The red Mustang broke down.  Mini Coupe to the rescue.
FF of the Year, Mike Picard with United States Trooper of the Year, Tyler Carlton.



About "Police and Fire: The Fallen Heroes"

Hello everyone. First, a little about Police and Fire: The Fallen Heroes ---

Our organization was founded in 2009. We started out, originally, with a specific mission: to give-back to the families of the four Oakland Police Officers who were killed in the line of duty on March 21st of that year. With the help of Diablo Country Club (Diablo, CA), friends and supporters, we hosted a Celebrity Golf Tournament in 2010 in their honor. The proceeds from that successful event allowed us to give those very deserving families $40,000... No amount of money could ever ease their suffering, but we hope it helped, in some way, to lessen the stresses involved with such a tragedy.

It was after the tournament that we began to reevaluate the mission and direction of our non-profit. Helping those families had a powerful effect on all of us and we didn't want to stop there. The past three years have seen us through several more events, three Celebrity Golf Tournaments (with our fourth coming up in June 2013) and many valued relationships with other non-profits, philanthropic corporations and some very giving friends and dedicated volunteers. All of these experiences and connections have aided us in our reformulated mission: to provide scholarships and assistance programs for the children of our fallen police officers and firefighters in California. The families of these men and women who are killed in the line of duty are in need and are certainly deserving of this assistance. We do not discriminate between union, volunteer or reservists...if the need is there, we want to help.

Our scholarship program is now up and running and our first recipients will be awarded at our 4th Annual Fallen Heroes Celebrity Golf Tournament, June 10, 2013.

We're excited about our new blog and looking forward to more rewarding experiences for 2013! Please visit our website at www.thefallenheroes.org for up-to-date info on events and activities.

Tom Gallinatti, CEO