FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) — A national organization dedicated to supporting the families of those killed in the line of duty has offered support to the family of an Indiana State Trooper.
Background: In Memory of Master Trooper Bailey
Master Trooper James Bailey was killed while attempting to use stop sticks to quell a police pursuit on March 3, 2023. Bailey leaves behind a wife and two children.
This week, the Tunnel to Towers Foundation helped Bailey's family by paying off their mortgage.
The Tunnel to Towers Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports the families of fallen first responders and veterans.
One of the initiatives is the Housing Program for Fallen Emergency Service Members, which helps pay off the mortgages of police officers and firefighters who are killed in the line of duty and leave behind young children.
John Huvane, vice president of the organization's “on-duty” program, said the foundation's goal is to ensure stability and safety for families who have experienced tragic loss.
“He was a local hero,” John Huvane said, “and being a former emergency medical technician myself, when you look at someone like James, you know what a great servant he was to the people.”
Huberne said the foundation has helped pay off 200 mortgages and build new homes this year alone, and has also helped build 40 smart homes for severely injured veterans.
Hubane said when a first responder or military member dies in the line of duty, the foundation receives emails and calls from those close to the family, the unit they served in or friends of the family. The foundation then contacts the family to see how it can help.
Hubane said that for families with a home and mortgage, it would mean paying off the mortgage and paying a year's worth of insurance and property taxes. For families who don't have a home and are renting, it would mean buying a home.
“We want to make sure that these children always have a roof over their head,” Hubane said. “Imagine losing a parent and then having to move.”
Bailey is one of three Indiana officers supported by the organization's Fallen First Responders Home program, along with the families of Vanderburgh County Deputy Sheriff Asson Hacker and Carroll County Deputy Sheriff Noah Rainey.
The organization accepts donations and collects $11 a month to fund the program.
Click here to learn more about the Foundation.
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