Medgar Evers College held its first annual Bridging the Gap basketball tournament Friday night to benefit the Officer Russel Timoshenko Scholarship Fund.
“We are very, very honored,” said Tatyana Timoshenko, the mother of Officer Timoshenko -- who was gunned down in July 2007 while making what had appeared to be a routine traffic stop. “And it feels so wonderful that people remember our son’s name.”
The event was hosted by the college’s Student Government Association in collaboration with the 71st Precinct Detectives Unit. Even though Timoshenko did not attend Medgar Evers, the Brooklyn school is located in the patrol area where he worked.
“The 71st precinct is a serious part of our community,” said Medgar Evers Dean John Graham. “It’s a symbiotic relationship that we are celebrating today.”
Yet while the men responsible for his death have been brought to justice, Timoshenko’s death and memory still haunts his fellow officers.
“People have to realize there’s never just a routine car stop,” said 71st precinct Detective Peter Margraf. “You never know whose behind the wheel and whose in that car so our jobs are very, very dangerous.”
The Timoshenkos say events like the one at Medgar Evers make the holiday season easier to endure because since the death of their only son, they haven’t been able to celebrate anything.
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“We’ll never replace him and unfortunately we don’t celebrate any holidays in our family anymore," said Tatyana Timoshenko.
