Coronavirus Cancels Parade: Police Make Dream Come True For Duo

SOUTHOLD, NY — Coronavirus couldn't stop the parade for two young men on the North Fork Saturday, as men in blue became superheroes and made their dream come true.

When the annual Cutchogue St. Patrick's Day Parade was cancelled due to coronavirus concerns, Johnny Tardif and Thomas Jernick, two young men from the North Fork who are wheelchair-bound and face health challenges, were broken-hearted.

Molly Waitz saw a post by Shelly Tardif, Johnny's mom, asking if the parade would be canceled. Tardif said her son had been "so looking forward to it for months . . . He was waking up in the night and asking how many more days until the parade. She said he was going to be devastated and didn't know how to break the news to him," Waitz said. "My heart broke for him."

That's when the Southold Town Police stepped up in a big way. Police Officers Andrew Garcia and Tim McGowan — McGowan is also a member of the Eastern Long Island Police Pipes and Drums — organized a festive "parade" just for the two young men, who are friends, right outside the house in Cutchogue where they gathered.

"With the coronavirus came the cancellation of the Cutchogue St.Patricks Day Parade," Tardif wrote on Facebook. "I wasn’t sure they would cancel so I asked on Facebook if anyone knew for sure. Molly Waitz told me it was. I knew how disappointed Johnny would be, as he had been looking forward to it for a month."

Then, Tardif said, the love of a small town came shining through. "They organized a private parade for Thomas Jernick and Johnny. Their faces were priceless. I don’t know if the police know how happy they made us. This was such a beautiful act of love and kindness. My heart is filled with pride for our men and women in blue. always going above and beyond!"