The family of Paterson police officer Francesco ‘Frank’ Scorpo, who died earlier this month due to complications from COVID-19, will get financial support from a charity for first responders.

The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation said on Saturday that it will pay off the mortgage on the Scorpo home.

Scorpo, 34, was the first Paterson police officer and first city employee to die after testing positive for the coronavirus. He was hospitalized for 10 days before he succumbed to the virus on April 12.

The five-year police veteran left behind his wife, Kristina, a nurse, and their two sons, 4-year-old Francesco Jr. and 6-month-old Santino.

Frank Siller, Chairman and CEO of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, said in a statement, “My hope is that, in lifting this financial burden off of Kristina’s shoulders, she can grieve and focus on her two young boys with greater peace of mind.”

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Kristina Scorpo expressed gratitude to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation for its support.

“I’m incredibly grateful to The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation for their generosity, which will enable me to raise my children in the home Frank and I shared. I would like to thank the Foundation for honoring my husband’s service, and for helping me to keep his memory in our home," said Kristina Scorpo.

The Tunnel to Towers Foundation established the COVID-19 Heroes Fund has raised $4.5 million with those funds being used to support frontline health care workers and first responders by providing personal protective equipment, meals, and financial relief through temporary mortgage payments to the families of those who lose their lives to COVID-19 and leave behind young children.

Ricardo Kaulessar is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com Twitter: @ricardokaul