Tunnel To Towers Foundation pays off mortgage of officer killed in the line of duty in honor of 9/11

by Ernest Van Glahn

Charles Kondek Jr. was killed in the line of duty on Dec. 21, 2014, according to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.

Kondek Jr. followed in his fathers footsteps, who was an NYPD Detective, by joining the NYPD in 1991. He served in New York City for six years, then transferring to Tarpon Springs.

According to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, Kondek Jr. responded to a noise complaint for loud music from a parked car, when approaching the vehicle, a career fugitive with an active warrant and stolen gun ran towards him firing seven times before running him over and fleeing the scene.

Kondek Jr. is survived by his wife Teresa and five children, Charles M., Holly, Andrew, Brandon, and Aleena.

Five years after Kondek Jr. was killed, Andrew graduated from the Law Enforcement Academy, and is now serving as a Tampa Airport Police Officer.

“Knowing the forever home that my husband and I built, and the history here, is now debit-free, words can’t describe our gratefulness. How can you thank someone enough for that,” Teresa Kondek said.

Teresa is an advocate for law enforcement and assists widows and children left behind, according to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.

“Officer Kondek served the city of New York and then gave his life to protect the community of Tarpon Springs, Florida. On the 23rd anniversary of the terror attack on America, we are honored to pay off the mortgage on the homes of our heroes like Officer Kondeck,” said Tunnel to Towers Chairman and CEO, Frank Siller.

The Tunnel to Towers First Responder Home Program pays off mortgages of law enforcement and firefighters who are killed in the line of duty, pass away from 9/11- related illness, and leave behind young children.