Snapshot of NYPD Officer Giving Boots to Homeless Man A Sensation Online
November 30, 2012 08:14:00 am
A tourist's snapshot of a New York City police officer giving new boots to a barefoot homeless man in Times Square has created an online sensation, the Associated Press reports. Jennifer Foster, of Florence, Az., was visiting New York with her boyfriend on Nov. 14, when she came across the shoeless man asking for change in Times Square. As she was about to approach him, she said the officer, Larry DePrimo, came up to the man with a pair of all-weather boots and thermal socks on the frigid night. She recorded his generosity on her cellphone.
It was posted Tuesday night to the NYPD's official Facebook page and became an instant hit. More than 410,000 users "liked" it as of Thursday evening, and more than 100,000 shared it. Thousands of people commented, including one person who praised him as "An officer AND a Gentleman." The NYPD Facebook page Thursday posted a comment from DePrimo saying, "I didn't think anything of it." "I have these size 12 boots for you, they are all-weather. Let's put them on and take care of you," Foster quoted DePrimo as saying to the homeless man. Foster, is a dispatch manager at the Pinal County Sheriff's Office, said she's worked in law enforcement for 17 years and has never been more impressed.