To protect and serve: NYPD shares heartwarming images of a new officer on duty at the Pride parade tying a woman’s rainbow necktie for her – and then embracing her in a warm hug
- Officer John Sammartino with the New York Police Department was approached by a woman to help her tie her rainbow necktie during the WorldPride Sunday
- Photographers captured him tying the necktie on his own neck to help
- He then placed the tie around her neck before hugging the parade attendee
- NYPD shared the heartwarming images of the interaction and revealed it was Officer Sammartino’s first day on the job
- WorldPride NYC saw more than five million parade attendees on Sunday
- The NYPD was praised by Mayor Bill de Blasio Tuesday for keeping everyone safe
The New York Police Department shared a heartwarming moment during WorldPride NYC on Sunday involving one of its newest officers and a parade attendee.
In a four-part photo series, Officer John Sammartino is pictured helping one attendee tie her rainbow necktie to complete her colorful Pride outfit.
‘NYC policing, a tale in 4 acts,’ the NYPD’s official Twitter account wrote before detailing each of the four pictures.
Looking for help: Officer John Sammartino with the New York Police Department was approached by a woman to help her tie her rainbow necktie during the WorldPride Sunday


Heartwarming: Photographers captured him tying the necktie on his own neck to help

Beautiful moment: The pair then shared a hug at the end of the heartwarming interaction

Incredible: NYPD shared the moment on Twitter Wednesday and revealed it was Officer Sammartino’s first day on the job
The pictures first showed the woman asking Officer Sammartino for help tying the necktie. To help, the officer decided to place the tie on himself to properly knot.
Then in the third picture, he is photographed placing the tie around the woman’s neck before adjusting it to properly work for her.
The heartwarming interaction, captured by a woman named Brin Hanson, ended with the cop and woman sharing a hug.
NYPD revealed at the end of its post that it was actually Office Sammartino’s first day on the job, and he was assigned to monitor the Pride festivities.
‘Plot twist: this was Officer Sammartino’s very first day on the job. May all police interactions end with a hug,’ the department wrote in its tweet.
The police department acquired the pictures to post on Wednesday after Hanson first shared them on her own Twitter account Monday.
Officer Sammartino also joined in on the conversation after the interaction was made public online.
‘Just became a cop and already trending,’ he joked in a tweet.
People praised the heartwarming interaction on Twitter with some saying it was the ‘best type of news’.

Ready to help: ‘Plot twist: this was Officer Sammartino’s (pictured left) very first day on the job. May all police interactions end with a hug,’ the department wrote in its tweet

Love: Blogger Brin Hanson took the pictures that were then shared with the NYPD

Viral sensation: The officer even joined in on the conversation online and joked how he was already ‘trending’ as a cop
‘The #NYPD was great at #WorldPrideNYC I felt safe and respected at,’ another person commented on the images.
The NYPD was praised by NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday for the department’s efforts to keep everyone safe on Sunday.
‘We saw something amazing this last weekend. Five million people came here for WorldPride. Five million people and there was almost not a single incident,’ de Blasio said at NYPD graduation on Tuesday, ABC News reported.
‘What I saw was extraordinary efforts by NYPD to keep people safe.’
The mayor also said crowds appeared to welcome the presence of the police department during the event.
‘I saw the people who were here for the event showing their appreciation, applauding the members of the NYPD, thanking them for the extraordinary job they did,’ de Blasio continued. ‘The professionalism on display the last few days, and every day, was extraordinary. And now you get to build on that.’
WorldPride NYC was as important as ever this year, as it was the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots — an event which helped propel the LGBTQ civil rights movement.
Heartwarming moments, such as the interaction with Officer Sammartino and the woman, showed the change in camaraderie between the NYPD and the LGBTQ community.