Norwalk Police Officer praised for good deed

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NORWALK -- An elderly city resident is expressing her gratitude for a Norwalk Police officer who purchased food for her after her Meals on Wheels dinners were stolen.

Sylvia Solney, a resident of a Main Avenue assisted living home, said Officer John Sura went above and beyond the call of duty by purchasing a weekend's worth of food for her from Stew Leonard's.

"I remember saying to him, 'Tell your mother she has a wonderful son,'" she said. "You don't find a lot of people like that, especially nowadays."

Solney called police on Friday, Sept. 20 at 6:50 p.m. after noticing both of her weekend Meals on Wheels dishes were missing.

"I was very upset," she said. "I didn't know what had happened."

Sura responded to the scene shortly thereafter and spoke with Solney. He tried to call Meals on Wheels but could not reach a representative. He asked Solney if she had any food in her home, and she said she had a hot dog and some peanut butter and jelly.

Solney told Sura that she is on a fixed income and rarely drives her vehicle, police said.

Sura took notes and left the scene, driving to Stew Leonard's, where he purchased food from the hot and cold salad bars as well as milk and other items for Solney. Solney didn't think he was going to come back to the assisted living home.

"I was very impressed with him," she said. "I didn't even mention it to him. He came back like 15 minutes later."

Sura's good deed went basically unnoticed until earlier this week when a supervisor was reviewing reports that had been filed by his officers. The supervisor read Sura's report and forwarded it to Police Chief Thomas Kulhawik.

Solney also called the police chief earlier this week and left a message on his answering machine, praising Solney as one of "Norwalk's finest."

"He didn't have to do that with the meals," she said. "I wanted to thank him in a special way by calling the chief. He would make a great son-in-law."

Kulhawik said he wasn't surprised by Sura's actions, as Sura is a "great officer" who has been a "credit to the department" since transfering from the Branford Police Department in 2011.