Group Pays Off Mortgage Of Yonkers Sergeant Killed On The Job

YONKERS, NY — On December 1, Sgt. Gualdino, a 24-year veteran of the Yonkers Police Department, was killed when an unlicensed 16-year-old driver crossed into the opposite lanes at a high rate of speed and struck his vehicle head-on.

Gualdino served his community for over 24 years and was just months from retirement. He had recently been honored in October for saving the life of a little boy at a funeral.

He left behind his wife Lisa and two children.

On Tuesday, Tunnel to Towers CEO Frank Siller hand-delivered a mortgage payoff notice to Gualdino's family.

"This holiday season, we honor those families who have sacrificed so much for all of us," said Tunnel to Towers Chairman Frank Siller in a statement. "To the families who are still grieving the recent loss of a loved one and to those who are enduring another year with an empty seat at the table, Tunnel to Towers is honored to celebrate your loved one’s service and ensure that you and your family can stay in your home forever."

Tunnel to Towers wrapped up it's 2022 "Season of Hope" by paying off the mortgages for nine fallen first responders in the region, including Gualdino.

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In addition to Sgt. Gualdino, the Tunnel to Towers Foundation has also paid the mortgages on the homes of:

• Nassau County Police Officer Matthew Perlungher
• NYPD Detective First Grade Terence Mulvey
• NYPD Sergeant Stephen Scalza
• NYPD Detective Third Grade John Goggin
• New Jersey Department of Corrections Senior Correctional Officer Edward Jamandron
• NYPD Detective Jeffrey Allen Scalf
• Customs and Border Protection Officer Mario Dichiara
• Port Monmouth Fire Company Firefighter Robert Weber

Officer Perlungher, Detective Mulvey, Sergeant Scalza, and Detective Goggin all passed away from 9/11-related illnesses.

Correctional Officer Jamandron, Detective Scalf, CBP Officer Dichiara, and Firefighter Weber all passed away from complications as a result of contracting COVID-19 in the line of duty.

Tunnel to Towers’ Season of Hope marks the holiday season by lifting the financial burden of a mortgage from the families of fallen first responders, Gold Star families, and catastrophically injured veterans around the country.

This year alone, Tunnel to Towers delivered over 200 mortgage-free homes across the country to just such heroes and their families.

About the Tunnel to Towers Foundation

The Tunnel to Towers Foundation is dedicated to honoring the sacrifice of FDNY Firefighter Stephen Siller, who laid down his life to save others on September 11, 2001. For more than 20 years, the Foundation has supported our nation’s first responders, veterans, and their families by providing these heroes and the families they leave behind with mortgage-free homes.

For more about the Tunnel to Towers Foundation and its commitment to DO GOOD, visit Follow @Tunnel2Towers on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

You can join the mission to provide mortgage-free homes to the heroes and the families they leave behind by donating $11 per month at T2T.org.