He was the type of dad all kids wanted: He taught the important life lessons, but was also fun, willing to take teenage girls to concerts, his daughter said.
“My father is one of the most kind-hearted, considerate and brave people you will ever know,” Isabella Echeverri said through tears. “He had so much left to share with the world.”
On Monday, family, law enforcement officers from various agencies, and other mourners filled a south Fulton County church to honor Helio Garcia, killed in the line of duty. Garcia, who joined the South Fulton police department the year it formed, died from injuries sustained in a head-on crash April 16. He was 47.
He was as devoted to his family as he was to his law enforcement career, according to those who spoke during the service at World Changers Church International in College Park.
Garcia’s leadership guided the South Fulton department after it formed in 2018 and rose to the rank of lieutenant. During Monday’s service, police Chief Keith Meadows said Garcia had posthumously been promoted to captain.
“For your ultimate sacrifice to the City of South Fulton, Georgia, we are reminded not only of the life you gave, but the unwavering devotion that led you to serve,” Meadows read.
Meadows presented Garcia’s family with a framed police uniform shirt, complete with a name badge that read “Capt. H. Garcia III.”
Garcia had wanted to become a police officer from a young age while growing up in Florida, his family had told Meadows after his death. Garcia joined the U.S. Marines before beginning his 15-year career in law enforcement.
“Chasing your dreams takes courage,” Meadows said. “And that’s something not everyone has the courage to do.”
Meadows had selected Garcia to work on the night shift to help guide the young officers, he said Monday. Garcia had quickly built strong relationships with those officers.
Last week, Garcia was driving his patrol vehicle on Flat Shoals Road near Hidden Brook Trail when another driver veered into his lane and struck him, according to the Georgia State Patrol. Both drivers were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital. The crash remains under investigation.
In addition to his daughter Isabella, Garcia is survived by survived by his wife, Eliana Garcia; children Angelina Rosa Pittman and Nicolas Anthony Garcia; along with his parents and two brothers. He was predeceased by a son, according to his obituary.
“Helio always put others before himself,” Eliana Garcia said during the funeral. “He has dealt with some difficult cards in his life, but he never let that get him down.”
Garcia will be buried in Florida, alongside his son, Giovanni.
“On Saturday, my son will be reunited with my grandson,” Helio Garcia II said. “I know that’s how he would’ve wanted it.”
Garcia was the first South Fulton officer to die in the line of duty, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. The department previously lost a K-9 on Nov. 17, 2023.
The South Fulton officer is the second in Georgia to be killed in the line of duty this year. Roswell Police Department Officer Jeremy Labonte, 24, was shot and killed Feb. 7 responding to a call reporting a suspicious person.
“I know will you always walk beside me, just as you did before,” Garcia’s daughter, Isabella, said Monday. “...My father showed some sort of love to everyone in this room. And he will forever be with us.”
— Staff writer Rosana Hughes contributed to this report.
HOW TO HELP THE FAMILY
A GoFundMe page titled “Honor Captain Garcia: Support His Loved Ones” was created to assist the Garcia family.
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