It's been a week since police press officer, ASP Fitzroy Yearwood passed away, leaving a blanket of grief over his families - both biological and departmental.
And, he also had a TV family; almost every Monday night, you'd see his face on your television screen no matter which newscast you watched.
But last Tuesday, the police communications officer passed away after suffering a massive stroke.
And while we've since heard from his boss, the Commissioner of Police, his family has been silently grieving. But this morning, his sisters and wife took up his usual spot inside the conference room at the Raccoon Street Police Station. And instead of a crime briefing, we got a briefing about Yearwood's life as an officer and a family man.
Courtney Menzies has this story.
For the past 8 days, Fitzroy Yearwood's his family has been trying to come to terms with his sudden death.
Sudden, because hours before he had a massive stroke, he was enjoying some family time while watching the end of the Holy Saturday Cycling Classic. According to his wife, there were no signs that a peaceful day would have had such a devastating end.
Adilean Yearwood, Wife
"That day I remember, Holy Saturday, we got up very early watching the race on the television and he was very excited because Belizean was in the lead and so there was just this thrill and he kept telling us, you guys, better get ready because who's not ready by the time I'm ready to leave, you're going to be left behind and so all the kids were, everybody trying to get ready, and we had such a great time, there was no indication that hours later that he would be in that condition. So when everything changed, it really took us by surprise because there was no indication at all that we were headed in that direction."
Sharret Yearwood, Sister
"It was probably a little after 7, I was still at my mom, Saturday night, a little after 7, his wife called me and she said, sis, I need your help. And she started explaining to me that he was throwing up and I told her listen, call the ambulance. His wife said that he was conscious, he spoke to her and everything, but when we got there, just at the time we got there, it's like he just fell into a deep sleep."
"And… my brother was something else you know, because I had to help carry him. you know, he's a little prankster, so I wouldn't expect anything differently from him, so all three of us here helped to take him downstairs right after they had him ready and everything and we had to lift and we had to carry him and I was so happy that we had to do it though because he would expect nothing less from any of us sitting here."
And while, in hindsight, this family can find a little humor, there were no smiles while Yearwood had been in the hospital.
Sharret Yearwood, Sister
"That was an emotional rollercoaster. The first night when he got there, he had to do a CT Scan for them to see what was going on. The results of that, the prognosis was grim. However, we held on to hope because for those of you who are familiar with his history, his health history, he was a knocked down real low before and so we expected that he would pull through, I mean, the science of it I understand, prognosis not so good, but there was hope, there was that part of us that said, he's a strong guy, he can get through this, but it wasn't that situation, I mean, we're looking hemorrhaging here, we're looking at swelling there, and the location of the hemorrhaging, and so at that point the doctor's said we can't touch him, we can't do anything. But to wait and see what would happen in the next 72 hours."
And on Tuesday afternoon, they got the news that he had passed away.
And while the stroke was sudden, Yearwood had a history of diabetes and hypertension - which his family also attributed to his love of "rich" food. But that was compounded by his high-stress job. Despite that, though, his sister explained that he loved everything about being a cop.
Sharret Yearwood, Sister
"And so he joined that and he was very committed to his job, he enjoyed every moment of it, there are some people who will say, you know it's risky, but I'll tell you, he walked the streets and he could have walked any street in this city and in this country. And he earned his respect."
"I think for him, being on the mic, and so he went through different departments and, I mean, he did the streets, he beat the streets, he had that phase of his life and he was always excited about that too even when he had to interact with gang members and so on, he leveled with them, he had the skill to get across to them and eventually he ended up as the public relations officer and he took charged of this, he was in control because he was comfortable speaking in front of an audience. Once he had a mic ins hand, he was in his element."
But Yearwood wasn't just an officer - he was a husband, father, brother, and protector.
Adilean Yearwood, Wife
"He was a dedicated father. Along the years he made many sacrifices for his children, whether it was a sacrifice that they knew of or didn't know of. He was a protector, you wouldn't want to cross his children because you're crossing him so he was very protective, not only of his children, but of his loved ones, his family, he took family very seriously. It's hard to wrap our heads around everything that has happened recently, it's very hard."
Monique Yearwood, Sister
"When I think of him, I cannot recall a time when Fitzroy didn't have a solution for a problem, it could be anything and I could take it to him and he would say, like, is that what you're worried about? I can fix that. I believe that yes he served in his job in that capacity but he served anybody, he helped anybody, he was just always, always there for you."
Sharret Yearwood, Sister
"The way he has and so that's comforting for me personally to know that he came, and he did what he was supposed to do and at the end of the day, God loaned him to us, it was a loan and so I think for most of us in this room, we would look at it and say yes, everybody wants to get old, yes I was hoping my brother would get old with me, that's what I was hoping for but it wasn't designed that way."
ASP Yearwood leaves behind 9 children, and is the third child out of eight siblings.
ASP Yearwood will be buried with full military honors on April 21st.
