JUSTIN LEO: God used him to make difference

By WILLIAM K. ALCORN

alcorn@vindy.com

GIRARD

Slain Officer Prayer Vigil

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A prayer vigil for slain Girard PD officer Justin Leo was held at St. Rose Church in Girard.

Slain Offficer Prayer Vigil

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A prayer vigil for slain police officer Justin Leo was held at St. Rose Church in Giard.

“All Lives Matter” was printed on the insert of the program for the community prayer service Tuesday in St. Rose Church to honor the life of fallen Girard police officer Justin Leo for the way he lived and died – trying to help someone.

“Today we honor Justin Leo, whose acts of kindness and compassion, while perhaps not newsworthy, were the realities of his daily living which reflected the goodness of ordinary people,” said Monsignor John Zuraw, pastor of St. Rose Church, speaking to more than 500 people filling the church for the 7 p.m. service.

Leo, 31, the first Girard policeman killed in the line of duty, was shot about 10:15 p.m. Saturday while responding to a reported domestic-dispute call at 408 Indiana Ave. He died later in St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital.

The bigness of the problems facing the world are sometimes so overwhelming people wonder what they can do, Monsignor Zuraw said.

“I believe Justin, through his daily living, gave us the answer,” he said.

“We cannot solve all of the world’s problems, but there is something we can do. We can start with our own lives. We cannot solve the total problem of indifference, but we can care. We cannot eliminate the problem of selfishness, but we can give. We cannot feed the entire world’s hungry, but we can help those whom we know are in need. We can allow God to use our lives to handle the needs of our brothers and sisters. Little acts of kindness can truly make a difference,” Monsignor Zuraw said.

“Today, we give thanks to God for Justin’s life and for all that we have received from him. God used Justin to make a difference in the world and in Girard,” Monsignor Zuraw said.

Pat and David Leo, Justin’s parents, who sat at the front of the church comforting each other during the service, are honoring their son’s legacy of caring and helping others by using the financial outpouring from the community and surrounding police departments to establish a college scholarship in his name for a Girard student.

Monsignor Zuraw ended his remarks by asking those in the church to turn to the person next to them and say: “Your life matters.”

Joining the Girard community and police and fire departments in honoring Leo’s life and service were personnel from numerous neighboring police and fire departments, including Youngstown, Liberty, Fowler, Campbell and the Trumbull County Sheriff’s Office.

Liberty firefighters covered for Girard firefighters so they could all attend Leo’s service.

“That was a nice gesture,” said a Girard Fire Department captain.

Participating in the community prayer service were pastors from several Girard churches: The Rev. Diane Fonderlin of First Christian Church; the Rev. Vicky Kelly of First United Methodist Church; the Rev. Rhonda Gallagher of Trinity Lutheran Church; the Rev. Burl Jerrigan of First Baptist Church; and the Rev. Debbie Dockstader of First Presbyterian Church.

The service ended with the singing of “America the Beautiful.”