Funeral held for ex-MLB pitcher-turned NYC police officer who died on morning of 9/11 ceremony 

Family and friends gathered on Staten Island to say goodbye to the former MLB pitcher-turned-Port Authority police officer who was tragically killed in a ghost accident while driving to the 9/11 memorial earlier this week.

A sea of ​​blue uniforms stretched down the street for 37-year-old Anthony Varvaro as he was given the Guard of Honor at his funeral Thursday at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Tompkinsville. It was followed by internment in St. Peter’s Cemetery.

The Staten Island native retired from professional baseball in 2016 to become a police officer for the Port Authority in New York and New Jersey. He played six seasons in the Dutch big league, including four with the Atlanta Braves.

Varvaro died in the crash on the New Jersey Turnpike Sunday, leaving behind his devastated wife and four children, along with a grieving community who say he was “everything you could want in a person.”

Police officers hug as they mourn the former MLB pitcher who became a Port Authority police officer who was tragically killed in a ghost accident while driving to the 9/11 memorial earlier this week

Varvaro leaves behind his wife Kerry Varvaro and four young children. At Friday’s funeral, the grieving widow clung to their eldest son for comfort as she burst into tears and watched her husband’s coffin go by

Former baseball star turned police officer Anthony Varvaro was killed in a head-on crash Sunday when he collided with a wrong-way driver at exit 14C on the New Jersey Turnpike, close to the Holland Tunnel, in Jersey City

Varvaro was killed in the head-on crash on Sunday when he collided with a wrong-way driver at exit 14C on the New Jersey Turnpike, close to the Holland Tunnel, in Jersey City.

He was on his way to World Trade Center Command for the annual September 11, 2001 memorial.

Police say Henry Plazas, 30, of Bridgewater, New Jersey, was heading west in the eastbound lanes when he struck Varvaro’s car head-on. Both drivers were killed.

Varvaro leaves behind his wife Kerry Varvaro and four young children.

At Friday’s funeral, the grieving widow clung to their eldest son for comfort as she burst into tears and watched her husband’s coffin pass by.

Hundreds of officers lined Victory Boulevard outside the Our Lady of Good Counsel church in Thompkinsville to honor him Varvaro.

“Today we honor one of our heroes,” said Edward Cetnar of the Port Authority Police. “Anthony had a great life.”

Varvaro was remembered as “a family man and role model,” according to those who attended the mass.

“He volunteered to come to work that day, to work at the World Trade Center Security Service’s birthday. So it just shows you what kind of person he was,” Cetnar . told me CBS news.

Kerry Varvaro’s son grabs her hand as she attends her husband’s funeral service in Staten Island on Thursday

Kerry Varvaro sobs for her husband who died in a car accident on Sunday. The couple tied the knot in 2011

Families comfort each other at Anthony Varvaro’s funeral in Staten Island Our Lady of Good Counsel

Varvaro’s children will be seen at his funeral on Thursday. He had four children with wife Kerry

Police officers line the streets as Officer Anthony Varvaro is given the Guard of Honor at Our Lady of Good Counsel

Vigils for Varvaro were held on Tuesdays and Wednesdays where numerous family and friends paid their respects. Varvaro grew up on Staten Island and played at Curtis High School and St. John’s University. He was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in 2005.

St. John’s head baseball coach Mike Hampton said he “had no words” about Varvaro’s death.

“Not only was he everything you could want in a ball player, he was everything you could want in a person,” said Hampton, who was an assistant coach at St. John’s for all three Varvaro’s seasons there. “My heart goes out to his family, friends, teammates and colleagues.”

After college, Varvaro went on to play for the Seattle Mariners, Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox in the major leagues, before retiring in June 2016 to become a Port Authority police officer.

“On this solemn occasion, as the Port Authority mourns the loss of 84 employees in the attacks on the World Trade Center – including 37 members of the Port Authority police – our sadness is only deepened today with the death of Officer Varvaro,” chairman of the Port Authority. Kevin O’Toole and executive director Rick Cotton said in a statement after the fatal crash.

On behalf of the entire agency, we extend our deepest condolences to Agent Varvaro’s [family].’

Kerry Varvaro sobs in mourning for her husband who died in a car accident on Sunday

Varvaro holds her son as they mourn the loss of father and husband killed on Sunday

Kerry Varvaro kisses her son’s head on Thursday as they attend Anthony Varvaro’s funeral on Thursday

Wakes for Varvaro were held on Tuesdays and Wednesdays where countless family and friends paid their respects

Varvaro’s coffin is greeted as it leaves Staten Island funeral Thursday

Staten Island publication SILive reports that Varvaro was a pillar of the local community and was named president of the Snug Harbor Little League on the town’s north shore in 2021. He is said to have campaigned for renovations to the league’s facilities, including lighting for nighttime games.

“This is going to be an improvement for the community,” Varvaro said at the time. “And it’s going to give these kids a better chance. The future looks bright, literally, for the boys and girls of this small league.’

“It’s a tragedy,” John Eberlein, a family friend who coached Varvaro at Curtis High School, told SILive. “He was a better person than a baseball player, and he was a great baseball player.

“It was always his dream to become a police officer. He had a plan.’

Varvaro was on his way to work with his colleagues of police officers at the 9/11 memorial

Varvaro pitching for the Boston Red Sox against the New York Yankees shortly before his retirement