I interviewed my close friend and someone I like to call my uncle and his name is Salvatore Abusio. Salvatore Abusio is a retired NYPD detective and cop that now is retired and works for a law firm conducting cases which requires him to drive to different locations and states gathering information for hit and runs and other accidents. I chose Salvatore because he is a unique character with a very interesting background and history regarding his life and how he became a cop and how that affected his life in the long run. He has also been a great person that has given me a lot of advice. Sal continues to serve his community and the real question is why? He can stay retired and live a good life but continues to contribute to society in many positive ways.
When conducting an interview with Sal I asked him many questions regarding his personal and professional life. When asking Sal why he started out his life working as a NYPD cop he simply said “I wanted to contribute to society the best way I could and being a cop is what felt right to me at the time”. I also asked
him if he had any regrets joining the NYPD and he said “if you asked me right now if I could be a cop I wouldn’t know what to answer but it has definitely changed my life and made me who I am today”. I found that to be very interesting because of the personality he has. Sal completed his masters at St. John’s University in criminal justice and the most important skill he said that you would need to be in the NYPD is patience and determination. He said these two traits will determine if you will last in the force or not. One of the most intriguing questions I asked him was how did the NYPD affect him positively and negatively and he stated that “it helped me gain friendships and see a new perspective on life” but negatively “there were nights I couldn’t sleep because of dealing with 9/11, and definitely has been a stresser in my life which has given me stress”. These answers definitely showed me that being a police officer is one of the hardest things you can do even when all the odds may seem against you. I asked him what advice he would give to police officers and he replied “you have to look things in a different way now especially since technology is different and the world is also different as well, being a cop definitely has more negatives than positives if I can say”. Also when interviewing Sal I asked him how he feels about retirement and if it’s brought him closer to friends and family and he definitely thinks it has. He said he has been able to spend more quality time with friends and family and loved ones especially with his mom. He enjoys the time he has served in the force and definitely cherishes the little moments he has with loved ones. Having this conversation with Sal was very important to me because he describes himself as having all the personality traits that I have today and to see him succeed as he has gives me a lot of hope. The second part of the interview were questions that were based on what he does now with his free time and now that he’s retired. He still works part time in a law office but has said “it definitely doesn’t have all the weight that a NYPD cop had on me”. He describes it as almost like a vacation. I asked him what his hobbies are now that he has more free time on his hands he said “You know I still like to keep busy and I love to workout and go to the beach”. Sal is not married or does not have kids but he looks at his life like a personal journey and he says is filled with happiness. I also asked him if he could have gone back in time and picked a different career and he responded “I don’t think I would, I lived that life and although it brought me some negatives the positives outweigh them and I enjoyed the career very much”. One of my last questions to Sal was if he had any advice to give to me what it would be and he said “with anything that you do make sure you give it your all and to always have a positive outlook on things. Looking at things negatively will only hurt you”. These are words I’ll never forget and that have stood with me for a while.
Sal continues to be a positive impact on society and continues to do his duty in life which is to make people and himself happy. This interview has definitely made me see the other side of life and it was great to interview him.
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