Family says their love for stricken Horry County police officer will ‘live on forever’
The community said goodbye Tuesday to a hero.
A public procession and ceremony was held Tuesday for police Cpl. Michael Ambrosino at Myrtle Beach State Park following a private funeral attended by family and fellow police officers.
Ambrosino, 57, died last week of complications due to COVID-19. Police believe he was exposed to the virus on the job.
“COVID-19 took Mike, and it took our ability to mourn fully with everyone who meant so much to him, but it cannot and will not take our memories. Those live on forever, just like our love for him,” the Ambrosino family said in a news release.
Tuesday’s ceremony included a procession of law enforcement and family on the Myrtle Beach State Park pier. Members of the public watched from the beach as hundreds of police, fire and EMT personnel walked down the pier.
Family members poured a mix of sand, shells, and flower petals from the pier into the ocean, where he loved to spend so much of his time, according to the news release.
Ambrosino served more than 32 years as a police officer, including seven years with the Horry County police. Before that he served with the New York State Department of Corrections, the Philmont, New York, Police Department and the Coxsackie, New York, Police Department.
“Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to reach out to our family, offer assistance, and share a little about their experiences over the years with Mike. It’s touching how kind and generous people truly are,” the family said.
“It’s hard for us right now. The beautiful stories make us laugh and smile, but they also hurt because it means Mike isn’t here, and truthfully we would trade all of it in a minute if it would bring him back. “
Ambrosino is the first publicly announced, coronavirus-related death of a police officer in the Myrtle Beach area. Horry County police and the Coastal Carolina Fraternal Order of Police announced a Go Fund Me account to support Amrosino’s family. Donations can be made at gofundme.com.
This story was originally published August 25, 2020 at 1:21 PM.
