Thousands of officers from across the country came to pray, honor and say farewell to Dallas police officer Rogelio Santander on Tuesday.
The 27-year-old officer and his partner, Crystal Almeida, were shot last week while assisting in the arrest of a theft suspect at the Home Depot store in northeast Dallas.
Santander is the first officer to die in the line of duty since the ambush on July 7, 2016, when five officers were killed. Assigned to the Northeast Patrol Division, he had three years of service.
A video before the service showed a glimpse of the young officer's life, the pictures of a little boy who wanted his whole life to fight crime like super hero.
"He wanted to be like Batman and fight crime, save a city," said Bishop Edward Burns of the Catholic Diocese of Dallas. "It was in his DNA and desire to do just that and save a city to bring justice and bring peace."
But for those close to him, he was the super hero.
His girlfriend talked about how he encouraged her to go to college and do better for herself. She called him her blessing from God.
“Never giving up on me even when I wanted to give up on myself,” Jennifer Rivera said.
Fellow officers talked about his infectious smile uplifting those around him. He loved his assignment at the northeast patrol division where he worked for three years.
“That is where I love to work he told us. He was happy I knew he was,” said his friend, Oscar Romero.
Romero, who was Santander’s soccer coach, said he had dreams of making the DPD SWAT team. Being a DPD officer was his dream job, but he never lost sight of what was most important in his life: his family.
“He would call his mom every day, bring her flowers," Romero said. "He was a great son.”
As officers saluted his casket and escorted him to the cemetery they heard the words Bishop Edward Burns told them that while there is sadness there is hope that evil will not have the last word, hope that officer Rogelio Santander is resting in a peaceful place.
