Glen Kerrin Pettit, 30, of Oakdale, was a New York City police officer assigned to the video unit. Previously, he worked as a videographer for News 12 Long Island and as a freelance photographer for several publications, including Newsday. Pettit's body was recovered that December.
Glen Pettit will not be forgotten. His family made sure of that. Four nieces, all born after Pettit was killed, carry his name.
There is Kylie Glen Wixted, now 8; Erin Glen Patty Kroupa, now 7; Shannon Glen Pettit, 5, and Kerrin Pettit, now 4. Three of Pettit's six siblings decided that at least one of their children would have his name.
"One part of Glen's personality was that he was rambunctious and entertaining, and we were hoping to get a little burst of him in them," said his older sister, Deirdre Kroupa, 42, of Islip Terrace.
Two nephews, now 10 and 14, met their uncle.
Pettit's younger brother, Neil, a Metropolitan Transit Authority police officer, wears his badge number, 3815. His family made small decals with an inscription dedicated to Pettit. Friends and families fixed them on the windows of their cars.
The family also established four scholarships in his name, each giving $1,500 to a senior at Connetquot High, Pettit's alma mater; Eastern-Suffolk BOCES; Sayville High, where his sister, Tara Felice, teaches; and to a child of an MTA police officer.
On 9/11, Pettit was filming for a video that the NYPD intended to use to show recruits how officers handle crises. Pettit went to the World Trade Center to record the rescue efforts.
Three days before, the family celebrated the engagement of Neil Pettit to Megan Pickering. "We were at an engagement party Saturday and Tuesday we lost Glen," Kroupa said. "Life changed that fast."
After Pettit's death, the family vowed to get together for a vacation every other year. Life can get busy, Kroupa said, but the Pettits made it a point to take the time to enjoy each other. "The only excuses are pregnancy or a baby coming along the way," she said.
New York Newsday, 2011