Brother and Sister Write Heartwarming Note to Injured Police Officer
— -- A Connecticut cop was extremely touched when he received a "get well" note from two neighborhood children after suffering a knee injury while on duty.
The letter, written by a 9-year-old boy and his 8-year-old sister, thanked officer Anthony Nolan for "being like a dad."
"I started reading it and it was pretty emotional," Nolan of New London, Conn., told ABC News. "As as police officer you try and have that ego sometimes, but it didn’t work this time. It was very touching."
Nolan, a father of two college graduates, said he met the children two years ago while patrolling a local beach and over time he developed a special relationship with them. Their grandmother is the children's primary caretaker, according to Nolan.
"I hear from them daily," he said. "They call when they're sad, when they're going through something or when somebody isn’t there for them. I give them a little needed attention."
After learning that the brother and sister duo enjoyed reading as a hobby, Nolan said he began having story time with them on a regular basis.
But on Sept. 25, Nolan said, the reading was put on hold after he fell on the job during a traffic assignment, injuring his knee.
Nolan said his accident is what prompted the kids to write the heartwarming letter and deliver it to his home.
"I was coming home from an appointment and I saw a letter on the door and I said 'What in the heck is that?'" he said. "It was duck-taped to the door. I was with my mother and she said ‘Someone drew you a picture.'"
The note, complete with a drawing of Nolan in a police car, read in part:
...only you read to me.I will tell police station boss to not make you work in danger cause that [is] best for you.I really miss you and my sister is doin [sic] better cause of you. Thanks [for] being like a dad for us.
Nolan later posted the note onto his Facebook page.
"I called them within 30 minutes of finding it," Nolan said. "It overwhelmed me so much that I had to share it. It made me feel good. I didn’t even feel like I was injured anymore after I read it. It was one of those healing moments. It's starting to make me teary-eyed even now."
Nolan said he plans to frame the letter.
