A Brookhaven police officer with stage 3 stomach cancer got a surprise from a New York police group.
Joel Coward, who's been with the force since 2015 after years with Gwinnett County police, was diagnosed in September with cancer, according to an online fundraising page.
He just finished chemo and was exited to received a gift from Blue Lives Matter NYC, Channel 2 Action News reported.
The organization gave him the gift it gives many struggling cops: a check for $1,220.14. The amount is a reference to Dec. 20, 2014, the day when two New York detectives were killed in an ambush while sitting in their patrol car in Brooklyn.
Coward is going to Jamaica.
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“I have my energy, I have my strength,” he told the news station. “Just trust God.”
Coward, who is a Navy veteran and has a toddler, began noticing rapid weight loss and a weak appetite in September. Doctors found a tumor “the size of a grapefruit.”
He now has gained back his weight.
He faces stomach surgery in March and may have more chemo, but his outlook is good, Channel 2 said.
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