NYPD officer's act of kindness sparks online sensation
NEW YORK (AP) - 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.
Jennifer Foster, of Florence, Ariz., was visiting New York with her husband 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 - identified as 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 325,000 users "liked" it as of Thursday morning, and over 79,000 shared it.
Thousands of people commented, including one person who praised him as "An officer AND a Gentleman."
The photo shows the officer kneeling beside the man with the boots at his feet. A shoe store is seen in the background.
The NYPD Facebook page on Thursday posted a comment from DePrimo saying "I didn't think anything of it" and updated it with a photo of DePrimo taken in 2011.
"'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. "The officer squatted down on the ground and proceeded to put socks and the new boots on this man. The officer expected NOTHING in return and did not know I was watching."
Foster said she's worked in law enforcement for 17 years and has never been more impressed.
"His presentation of human kindness has not been lost on myself or any of the Arizona law enforcement officials with whom this story has been shared," Foster wrote on Facebook. She said she never got the officer's name.
DePrimo, who is assigned to the Sixth Precinct and lives on Long Island, told Newsday that the homeless man "smiled from ear to ear" after getting the boots.
"It was like you gave him a million dollars," he added.
He told The New York Times that he keeps the receipt for the boots in his vest to remind him "that sometimes people have it worse."
Jennifer Foster, of Florence, Ariz., was visiting New York with her husband 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 - identified as 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 325,000 users "liked" it as of Thursday morning, and over 79,000 shared it.
Thousands of people commented, including one person who praised him as "An officer AND a Gentleman."
The photo shows the officer kneeling beside the man with the boots at his feet. A shoe store is seen in the background.
The NYPD Facebook page on Thursday posted a comment from DePrimo saying "I didn't think anything of it" and updated it with a photo of DePrimo taken in 2011.
"'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. "The officer squatted down on the ground and proceeded to put socks and the new boots on this man. The officer expected NOTHING in return and did not know I was watching."
Foster said she's worked in law enforcement for 17 years and has never been more impressed.
"His presentation of human kindness has not been lost on myself or any of the Arizona law enforcement officials with whom this story has been shared," Foster wrote on Facebook. She said she never got the officer's name.
DePrimo, who is assigned to the Sixth Precinct and lives on Long Island, told Newsday that the homeless man "smiled from ear to ear" after getting the boots.
"It was like you gave him a million dollars," he added.
He told The New York Times that he keeps the receipt for the boots in his vest to remind him "that sometimes people have it worse."
This is how we do it in NYC... love New York's finest.. Good for him!
Hmmm, I wonder if we should forward this to SPD. Perhaps THEY could learn a little something.
Freaking awesome!
This is what the holiday season is all about!   Wonderful act of kindness!  Thank you Officer DePrimo, you are truly a special person. Â
Officer DePrimo, you were truly this man's angel. Bless You!
To serve and protect.
The world would be a lot better place if there were more people like Officer DePrimo in it. Well done sir.
I hope you are all aware that this IS a publicity stunt..
@emberlynn Obviously the allegory of the Cave was not meant for you. Do us a favor and stay in the cave.
@emberlynn If that were true then the picture would be of a higher quality and they would have made sure the police department logo was clearly defined.
 @emberlynn Hey, emberlynn this happens alot more then you want to believe! You just don't hear/read about it, because the humans (including police officers) that do it are not doing it for the publicity, they do it because they have COMPASSION and a HEART!
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What have you done for the ones that are less fortunate?
 @emberlynn pampas JERK! How judgmental can you get.
 @emberlynn Better get your tin foil hat, the black helicopters are coming.
@emberlynn Ahh yes, NYPD flew this couple from Arizona all the way to NYC just to have them take pictures of an officer giving a man a pair of boots. /sarcasm off Get a life.
This police officer is amazing. There are lots of good people out there that help others on a daily basis, I'm just glad this one was noticed and shared with all of us. Thank you to all the good people out there who don't get noticed but spend time to help others.
May this officer's kindness & compassion come back to him a thousand-fold! Â God bless you, Officer DePrimo, you are a fine human being.
What we didn't see was the cop's SPD trained partner originally taking the boots from the homeless guy and laughing.
@31F What a thoughtless remark that is.
@Jatok What else do you expect from the brainless police hating zombies?
 @Jatok No, actually I thought about it
 @31F SPD knows who you are and can make your life miserable.
Oh Chico, that's not SPD, that's Uncle Sam. Â The difference is one brutalizes people physically and the other does it mentally.
There are good and bad cops everywhere. It's when you make a broad sweeping generalization about them as a whole that you're doing them a disservice.Â
As much as we sometimes like to 'bash' the bad acting cops, and we should - this makes us remember that there is at least one good and caring cop in this world and in NYC, no less. But I'm sure, there are thousands more - they just haven't been 'caught in the act' yet.  Most of the good cops and good folks aren't looking for accolades, just a thanks and that big smile from someone who really needs something. I think there really are more people that are good at heart, we just don't hear or see them most of the time as we live our busy lives. They are there and doing good things. Stories like this uplift us - or it did me and a few other posters on here. :)
Where are all the cop haters???
50 comments If each person that just made a comment bought one pair of sox & shoes , winter coat, hat & gloves and left them at their local family shelter or mission... There would ideally be 50 people that would smile just as wide as the guy blessed in this photo and for many a cold night afterwards not being quite so cold out of doors.
 @GCW I have given many pairs of gloves, scarfs and hats to people on the streets. I have just been given a couple of warm coats that I will do the same with. I get back so much more than I give. And sometimes a few bucks to go with the stuff I give away. Enjoy the season.
Officer DePrimo showed great humility in his humble and thoughtful act. Not only did he buy boots that were probably too expensive for him to buy for himself, he also provided thermal socks. The thing that hit me the most was he put the socks and boots on the homeless man's feet. That, folks, is an insurmountable gesture of care. It reminded me of Jesus washing his disciples' feet.
Bravo to this awesome gentleman who has shown what the goodness of man can and should be.
 @koreanman012:Â
That was exactly the same reaction I had when I read about this & saw the picture.
Dang near fell down seeing komo actually publishing a pro police article. Probably be gone in a few hours.
 @Common Sense You poor baby.
@ArtB told you it would be gone in a few hours. Now a story about some gang banging thug who is whining about the police stays up for days.
 @Common Sense What to do mean, it's gone? It's still posted. Can I ask you: do you post under the same name on Copblock?
These acts of kindness give me hope for humanity and remind me of what matters most in this world. Â Unconditional acts of giving. Â Brings purpose to our lives and the lives of others. Â Well done sir.
I propose we all seek to catch others in random acts of kindness. I believe they are all around us, but often we are too busy to notice or only focus on the bad things. This reminds me to slow down a little, try to catch someone doing something nice and say thank you.Â
I try and help others every once in a while...we all need to try and watch out for each other as best we can.
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If every person tried to help just one other person...and then that person paid it forward to another...just imagine the difference it could make in this world.
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You don't see this sort of kindness from anyone now-a-days...not even average civilians citizens. To see it coming from an officer gives hope to every community nationwide. He has set a bar for all of us and I think we should accept the challenge.Â
 @refinneJ It does happen every day, we just don't see it as it is usually between the two people engaged in that moment.  I love what you said - it gives hope to every community nationwide. Â
Man... to live in a world where all police officers think and act like this one. Truly protecting and serving done right.
 @Sean Better, a world where EVERYONE acts and thinks like this man.
Quite a symbolic gift also... the start of something good in this mans future.
A shoeless man sitting outside a shoe shop?
 @therunner you need to give people an opportunity to put 2 and 2 together
Maybe we can bring him over to do a presentation for the Seattle PD about what it means to be a cop...
 @sdeneen2001 love it, thank you sdeneen2001
With that comment you just made about the Seattle Police Department....how fair do you think it will be to them the day you or your family needs help and they risk their lives to come to your rescue? You're putting down an entire police department because of the corruption of a few. Have you ever considered that all the negativity towards their every move will cause hesitation to protect and to serve at the risk of having a lawsuit slapped on them for doing their job? No one is perfect, but to judge an entire population because of a few bad seeds is unfair.Â
@refinneJ Wow, you read a lot into that comment... I actually meant that in a much more positive way. OF COURSE a majority of SPD cops are hard-working, caring men and women doing a tough job. But I think it is pretty well known that they've gotten a lot of bad press lately. I was thinking more along the lines of an inspirational presentation that might remind frustrated officers of why they joined the force in the first place, connect them with a cop who is getting the respect that a lot of them aren't right now.
@sdeneen2001 they have bad press because sheep like you eat it up without question.
What an incredible human being. Actually brought tears to my eyes.
I think that is wonderful. There are segments of the homeless called "can nots" they can't care for themselves, and truly the officer saw that.
For all the police bashers, you have no idea how many officers do things like this every day. The police in LA that I've known, would collect gifts and toys for families of crime victims that they'd been working with. Â They'd often do things like this for people they encounter who were struggling. It was their way of trying to make something good out of dealing with the worst of society most of the time. Â There are bad cops, but the majority are good.Â