Serving in law enforcement comes with challenges and sacrifices that most of us just aren’t willing to make. That’s what sets servicemen and women apart, their willingness to do and go through the unthinkable.
When it comes to state troopers, they are often our very first line of defense in many emergencies.
It is only right that we pay our respects and honor them with every opportunity we have.
A Texas state trooper was injured in the line of duty.
In the aftermath, his family and colleagues came together to support him on the road to recovery.
Trooper Tovar has been released from the hospital. He still faces many challenges in the days ahead, but he will not be alone; he has the support of a loving family and his brothers and sisters in law enforcement. pic.twitter.com/qfPpw8db39
— Texas DPS (@TxDPS) April 14, 2021
Trooper Juan Rojas suffered a gunshot while pursuing a murder suspect in Bryan.
According to the Madisonville Texas Highway Patrol office, Juan was shot by Larry Bollin, who killed one person and injured six others during a shootout at the Bryan cabinet plant.
He was rushed to the St. Joseph’s Health Center in Bryan and then flown to Austin for treatment.
While trooper Rojas’s injuries were serious in nature, he was in stable condition.
Thankfully, he left the hospital one week later.
The suspect, whose motive remains unclear, was taken into custody and charged with murder.
The victims were his coworkers at the cabinet plant, four of whom were in critical condition in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.
“(It was) just a regular day, and you can start hearing… gunshots, slamming, running, people falling, screaming — I fell myself. My whole leg went in the mud,” one employee said.
Fortunately, Tovar was able to make a quick recovery, thanks to the care of the medical staff at Bryan Health Center and Austin hospital where underwent treatment.
A group of trainees honored their wounded colleague with a salute.
Tovar was in for a big surprise as he left the helicopter and arrived at Austin for his medical treatment. He was greeted by Class A-2021 Trooper Trainees who saluted him for his bravery.
The touching image of Juan’s hero welcome was posted on the Texas DPS Facebook page and it became an instant hit, garnering over a thousand likes.
When Tovar couldn’t attend his son’s baseball game, his colleagues came to stand in his place.
Motivated by their love and respect for their injured colleague, a group of state troops went to his son’s baseball game and posted heartwarming photos of the event on their Twitter.
The images show troopers lined up along the fence.
In front of them was the message, ‘Pray for Tovar’ embedded in a chain-link fence.
Likewise, hundreds of commenters on Facebook offered their support to Tovar.
“Also praying for fast recovery and thank all the law enforcement there supporting his son, you guys are great,” Wanda wrote.
“Prayers to Trooper Tovar! What a great way to honor him snd his son from his trooper family!!! Awesome!” another user commented.
“Just another reason I have so much respect for our law enforcement officers.”
Tovar is getting better every day thanks to the love and support he’s been shown.
It means so much to watch a community band together like this in hard times. It truly is the stuff that American’s are made of, and we only hope to see more acts of solidarity like this in the future.
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