Brackenridge officials find themselves overwhelmed by the public support continuing to flow into the borough after police Chief Justin McIntire’s death.
A case in point is the dinner being planned to benefit the family of McIntire, who was shot and killed in the line of duty Jan. 2.
Councilman Dino Loprieato is involved in planning the community spaghetti dinner from noon to 6 p.m. March 11 at Pioneer Hose.
“You wouldn’t believe the stuff people have donated,” he said.
“It goes from Pittsburgh, the Penguins, the Steelers to local businesses,” Loprieato continued. “The community has just been wonderful.
“We’ve got a lot of people putting work into it.”
Tickets for the event are on sale now, and the cost is $5 for children and $10 for adults. Loprieato said the dinner organizers are encouraging people to buy tickets in advance so they can gauge how many dinners they will have to make. All proceeds will benefit McIntire’s family, he said.
“We are going to do the (prize) basket raffles, the 50-50 drawing and a spaghetti dinner,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mayor Lindsay Fraser
said the borough continues to receive messages and gestures of support from within and outside the state.
Fraser produced a plaque the borough just received from a group behind The Youth Program and Help the Needy Not the Greedy initiative.
The plaque thanked the chief for his service and generosities through the years and said he will not be forgotten. It ended with “We love you. God loves you.”
“This is just one example of the dozens of commendations, memorials, what have you, from all over Southwestern Pennsylvania,” Fraser said.
She said that extends to people outside the state who have sent everything from sympathy cards and letters of condolence to a $5 donation for the McIntire family.
Fraser said she is struggling with how to respond to that outpouring of support.
Tom Yerace is a Tribune-Review contributing writer.
