SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Jeff Cicora was the life of the party.

His wife Val, remembers hundreds of people showing up to his retirement party from the New York State Police. He was also funny and his son Jack remembers his kindness.

“He was the type of person to drop what he was doing to help the person next to him,” Jack Cicora said.

Cicora was a hero and his family wants that legacy to live on.

When terrorists attacked the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, Jeff was in K9 school in Cooperstown and immediately headed to NYC. He told Val he wasn’t nervous and had trained for it.

“I was really nervous and scared for him because when he finally did get to call, he said it was like doomsday,” Val said. “He said it was so tragic and a war zone is how he described it.”

Jeff spent six months at Ground Zero as part of search and recovery efforts. After six months there, Jeff and his dog searched subways and planes for bombs. When Jeff returned home to Central New York, his son Jack was born and life was good.

“We had such a great family life,” Val said. “We have a place up on the river in Clayton and we go up there and he would take Jack fishing.”

Jeff earned many awards over his nearly 25 years with the New York State Police. Val says he worked on some scary cases.

“I never feared about his health,” she said. “That’s what took us by such surprise.”

In 2016, Jeff was diagnosed with a rare cancer that was linked to his time working at Ground Zero. While in chemotherapy, he brought teddy bears to kids with cancer. Jeff’s goal was to make it to Jack’s 16th birthday. He did. He passed away a month later in August 2019.

“They gave him 12 to 18 months to live, and he ended up living almost four years,” Val said.

At his funeral, Jeff was remembered for his generosity and service. The family later received help from the Tunnel to Towers Foundation and was gifted a mortgage-free home.

“They gave us time as a family to get back on our feet and move forward without him and that’s what was so amazing, ” Val said.

This past August, Val and Jack ran the Tunnel to Towers 5K in Utica. In observance of 25 years since the September 11th attacks, the event honored the nearly three thousand people killed on 9/11. It also honored the people who died from 9/11-related illnesses and people battling those illnesses right now.

“I think it’s incredibly important because the casualties have almost doubled,” Jack said. “We’re seeing not only first responders but people in general who were around the pile; they are being diagnosed with illnesses.”

Jack is 23 years old and now works for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.

He is helping other families like his.

“I get to tell these families stories. When I said I want my dad’s legacy to live on, I get to be a part of telling these families’ stories so their loved ones’ legacy can live on,” Jack said.

Val is proud of Jack, and they are both forever proud of their hero who served with no hesitation.

“Even up till the day he died, he had no regrets going down there,” Val said. “No regrets.”