Kazcynskis Take a Trip to D.C., Meet the President

It’s not every day that everyday people rub shoulders with the President of the United States, but Karen Kazcynski did, with a photo to prove it. On Thursday, May 12, Kazcynski, along with her husband, Ron, were invited to the White House as their son Jason was honored with the National Top Cop Award.

Jason, who is a Chicago police Sgt., along with Officer Kimberly Thorp, were on desk duty, both recovering from medical issues, when they heard gunfire break out. Both took immediate action, even without bulletproof vests, and took down a man who has been charged with killing another police officer that day. (The complete story can be read via the Chicago Tribune.)

This line of work runs in the family. Ron has been a police officer now for more than 40 years, while Michael, the Kazcynski’s other son, serves and protects through the Special Operations Unit. They both followed in their father’s footsteps, which Karen said she expected. But what she did not expect was Jason being called to Washington, D.C. for this award. 

“The chances are one in a million of getting it,” Karen said. “I was in total shock when he called and said. ‘we’re going to Washington.’ It was quite a surprise. When you think about all of the officers in the United States and what other cops have done–it just didn’t really hit home until they said how frightening it was, what Jason did.”

All of the families had to be cleared ahead of time to gain entrance into the Rose Garden of the White House. After meeting with the officers privately, President Barack Obama came outside and gave a speech, speaking on the courage of the officers who, like soldiers, put their lives on the line each day. (The complete speech can be viewed online, along with a written transcript.) It was after the speech that Karen made her way up to the President for the photograph. But what was even more special for Karen was how her son honored his father during his acceptance speech.

As Karen recounted, “Jason said, ‘I have my whole family here and am grateful for them standing behind me all of the time–my wife and my two sons, and my parents–who are all here with me today–but especially my dad. My dad, Ron, has been a policeman for over 40 years and in my eyes, he’s the top cop.’”