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Greater Houston Concerns of
Police Survivors (GHCOPS) is a not-for-profit
organization that was founded in 1995 by MaryBess
Salvaggio (surviving spouse of Officer John Salvaggio,
Houston Police Department - EOW 11/25/1990) and Rick
Hartley, Executive Director of The 100 Club in Houston.
At the time of its birth, Greater Houston consisted of
15 counties. Today,
Greater Houston C.O.P.S. has a service area of 38
counties that are situated along the upper Texas Gulf
Coast and the Southeastern section of Texas. The
38 counties serviced today by GHCOPS are:
Aransas, Austin, Brazoria, Brazos, Burleson, Calhoun,
Chambers, Colorado, Fayette, Fort Bend, Galveston,
Grimes, Hardin, Harris, Houston, Jackson, Jasper,
Jefferson, Lavaca, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Matagorda,
Montgomery, Newton, Nueces, Orange, Polk, Refugio, San
Jacinto, San Patricio, Trinity, Tyler, Victoria,
Walker, Waller, Washington, Wharton.
Our membership is 1000+ strong
and each time we lose an officer in one of our
38 counties, we gain more unwanted members.
None of us want to belong to this organization -
there are no membership dues. When our
loved ones took their last breath on the face of
this earth, he/she paid those dues for us.
Through this organization, however, we have made
lifelong friends with other survivors who know
the pain and heartache of losing an officer in
the line of duty.
The heroism and bravery
of those officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice
in the Greater Houston C.O.P.S. service region must
never be forgotten; therefore, we are committed to them
to see that their memory and acts of bravery live
forever. |
