| OFFICER JOHN PERRY New York City Police Department | |
 | His life reads like a Hollywood movie script. Officer Perry was a tall, handsome, intelligent man who spoke five languages. Before joining the NYPD he served in the National Guard and later earned his law degree. Raised in middle-class comfort, John chose to live in a Manhattan housing project under a special program that provides low-cost, in-city housing for police officers. |
| At age 38, John was ready to retire from the NYPD and start his own law practice. On the morning of September 11, 2001, he was at 1 Police Plaza putting in his retirement papers when word came that a plane had slammed into the World Trade Center. Like so many other officers that day, John stopped what he was doing and raced to the scene. John became part of a group of rescuers in the north tower lobby who directed hundreds of people to safety. He was there until the very end, helping people as the tower came down. John Perry died as he had lived, a hero to the very last day of his career. | |