Disaster

Published by The National Herald, January 21, 2005

New York's Favorite Greek American Police Officer Retires

NEW YORK – Two weeks ago, retired Greek American police officer Christos Kaletsis was stopped in his car by a police officer because his taillight was not working. Just as Mr. Kaletsis’ colleague was getting ready to sign the Greek American’s first ticket since his retirement, Mr. Kaletsis took out his card. "I told him that we were colleagues, and that I had retired last November," Mr. Kaletsis recalled in an interview with the National Herald about his career experiences.

In this case however, Mr. Kaletsis came away feeling a bit surprised: "The officer told me, ‘I’m sorry sir,’ and put his ticket book back in his pocket," Mr. Kaletsis recalled. "I was so stunned that someone called me ‘sir,’ and not officer. I still haven’t realized that I’m a retiree." Instead of getting a ticket, Mr. Kaletsis ended up giving advice. His colleague asked him about his retiring terms, since he was himself planning to file for his retirement.

As a police officer with the New York Police Department, Mr. Kaletsis was a well-known mediator between the NYPD and the City’s Greek American community during its annual preparations for the Greek Independence Parade. But his experiences go further than planning gatherings, reaching into the realm of the unexpected.

"I have delivered seven babies… at the mothers’ homes, in my car, on the street… you name it," he said. He recalled his first delivery in 1986 at Washington Heights in upper Manhattan, where he served for many years. Mr. Kaletsis and his partner had gotten a call to run to the aid of a pregnant woman.

"We thought we could move her easily to the nearest hospital, but when we got there, her water had already broken. I tried to remember what I had learned in special classes we had taken for such occasions at the Police Academy. Finally, we did it. But I wouldn’t call it a smooth experience," he said.

Washington Heights was the scene of other similar emergencies. "Another pregnant woman was out there in the street and was moaning," the retired police officer said. "We knew there was no time to take her to the hospital. We tried to move her in the backseat of the police car, but she was in such pain, we bagged that plan immediately. We ran over to her and delivered the baby right there, in the street, right in front of the passersby. People were opening their windows and were watching and yelling out to her to have courage. Those were unforgettable moments," he said.

"I loved, still love and always will love the Police Department. It’s where I spent my best years," he said. "But it’s like a burden has been lifted off of my chest. That line of work is both tough and dangerous."

As a member of the Police Task Force, Mr. Kaletsis had come across life-and-death situations a number of times, especially during his assignments at protests and other public gatherings. During one protest, held close to St. Spyridon’s Church in Washington Heights, the former police officer recalls one of those moments with a sense of danger and humor which only a police officer can experience:

After gunshots were fired at the scene of the protest, he said, an array of police cars arrived, among them many Greek Americans. While waiting for their orders, the Greek American officers joked around exchanging some Greek lingo.

"Suddenly, we saw the priest from St. Spyridon’s, and we felt embarrassed for all the foul language we had uttered. But the priest smiled at us and said, ‘That’s all right, as long as I hear you speak Greek,’ " he said.

But it was during another protest when he felt more danger than he had previously experienced. "A police helicopter was flying above and some of the protesters started shooting at it," he said. Finally, the helicopter had to leave. "I knew there was a Greek American piloting the helicopter. Bullets were flying all around us. It was the first time that I felt danger so close to me," he added.

But there were also many invigorating moments which gave meaning to his daily struggles.

Mr. Kaletsis recalled stopping a car for driving into Central Park, on a day and time when it was forbidden.

"I approached the window, and when it rolled down, I saw Telly Savalas," he said. This meeting between Kojak, prime time television’s best-known police officer and the "real Greek American deal," led to a friendship, which lasted for years. Mr. Savalas immediately explained to Mr. Kaletsis that he was rushing his daughter to the hospital, so the police officer escorted the actor to his destination.

"When Savalas found out that I was Greek, too, he was thrilled and started calling me and we’d catch up every once in a while until he died a few years later," Mr. Kaletsis said. "He was a great man."

Mr. Kaletsis’ services were rendered on another important occasion: former Archbishop Iakovos’ final Divine Liturgy held at Central Park almost nine years ago.
"He loved me and always asked me how I was doing," Mr. Kaletsis said.

At the liturgy, the former Archbishop asked the police officer to sit by him the whole time.

"I told him, ‘I will, but only for a little while because I have to keep my eye on the entire area.’ Then the Archbishop gave me this strict look, but with that playful gleam in his eyes, and said, ‘I want you nearby. Do you understand?’ He is a great man, Iakovos, and a great leader. There aren’t not many men like him," Mr. Kaletsis said.

A native New Yorker, Mr. Kaletsis’ family hails from Sopiki in northern Epiros (in present-day southern Albania) on his father’s side, and from Perdika in Thesprotia of Epiros on his mother’s. He attended St. Demetrios Day School in Astoria and Aviation High School. Before joining the NYPD, he attended the New York Institute of technology.

"Astoria is like a scaled-down Greece," Mr. Kaletsis said. "It’s the center of Hellenism in America. It’s where the heart of Hellenism in America beats."

Greek Americans are generally very cooperative with police orders at all the community parades. "The stand out of that way," he said. "Our parade is the largest of all the smaller parades of New York, and it’s one of only 13 parades to march down Fifth Avenue." he added.

At such community events, Mr. Kaletsis said he always tried to talk to his fellow Greek Americans about community issues and tried to help out as much as he could. It’s probably one of the reasons Mr. Kalitsis is still New York’s favorite Greek American police officer.



Volume 7 Number 4 - Tuesday, January 25th, 2005	A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY