My Life Sentence

On May 31, 2026 By Judy GlasserIn When the Worst HappensLeave a comment

ave been given a life sentence.

For the rest of my time here on earth, my life will have a big hole in it. This hole has been getting larger as each year passes since my son, David Glasser, a Phoenix Police Officer, was killed in the line of duty on May 18, 2016. He is missing more and more important events and milestones of his family and our family. He’s not here for first days of school and a new year of baseball. He doesn’t get the chance to play with the new members of our family and birthday parties continue to happen without him. This list could fill 100 blogs.

My life sentence has no end on this planet. Every hour, every day, every week, every year – he is gone.

I have awesome memories of him, great pictures and two unbelievably precious grandchildren that remind me of him. But he’s not here.

And he will not be here.

Usually I try not to think about the fact that, 20 years from now, he will still be gone. I guess that’s the reality of a life sentence – it doesn’t change. There is no hope of parole. There is no break.

I try to focus on all of the blessings I had before Davey was killed and all of the blessings I have now. But….sometimes… the hole is just too big. The black hole of grief looms in front of me, making this never-ending path of loss extremely hard to navigate.

This life sentence on earth is a struggle.

So what’s my motivation for getting up in the morning?

Davey is gone but there are so many people still here. God has shown me that he has a purpose for me here on earth. There are still a lot of things he wants me to do. God is very obviously walking beside me up this mountain of a life sentence, giving me strength for the climb and wisdom for the blind curves.

I have also been given the eternal life sentence of being loved and cared for by my good Father God. This life sentence has already started and it will never end. There is no grief or loss in my relationship with God. Nothing can ever separate me from his love.

Davey is no longer experiencing any of these earthly struggles or pain. He’s in a perfect place with his Father God.

And I will be there, too, someday when my purpose on earth is done.

Miss you, Davey.

Love you

Love You

Two simple little words –

that are not simple

and they have had a huge impact on my life these last 10 years.

I have learned a lot about love since Davey, my son who was a Phoenix Police Officer, was killed in the line of duty on May 18, 2016.

I’ve been on this planet for a while and I have loved others and been loved by others my entire life.

But I never really understood the enormous power love has – until now. Love has transformed our tragedy into a growing season. It forced us to leave bitterness and anger behind – those emotions don’t fit when love is the focus. And it has helped us be thankful for what we had and for what we still have. Love has filled some of the huge hole created by the loss of Davey and it continues to cushion the rest so its possible to move forward.

Love is a decision, not an emotion.

Loving people who aren’t perfect and aren’t like us is not easy.

Loving people we don’t know or don’t like is usually not our first response.

‘Love you’ is a committment. It means I always want the best for you even if that will cause me to sacrifice something on my end.

It means that I’m on your team. I will care for you, defend you, pray for you and be here for you – always.

‘Love you’ says ‘You’re important to me’. It says ‘ You’re valuable to me’. It says ‘I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt when you’re wrong or grumpy or just not very lovable.’ It says “I’m going to come up with as many excuses for your behavior as I do for my own.’

Sometimes I say ‘Love you’ to people I don’t know well or don’t know at all. This ‘Love you’ says ‘I recognize you as a good person and I want the best for you. I’m glad we’re sharing this place or this moment together. ‘ ‘

I have discovered that this over-all ‘Love you’ culture is much more powerful than it sounds.

It’s not just words.

It’s not superficial when we also act like we ‘love you’ to the people around us. When the people around me – whether I know them or not – are important to me, the air changes around us. The mood is different. I can feel the acceptance and caring – not just of me but for each other.

A note to my Blue Family – loving each other and saying it regularly puts a band of steel under the Thin Blue Line. Love adds a strength to our relationships that you will not understand until you try it. Our family needs this strength to deal with our reality.

Love is the legacy that Davey left with us. He knew how essential love is for all of us and he made sure we told each other – regularly – at least every time we left each other.

I’m amazed at how much ‘Love you’ has changed my world these last 10 years.

And I’m aware of how much it has changed all of us. We recently held a Cornhole Tournament as a memorial for Davey, inviting all the people who went through hell with us on May 18, 2016. The love of everyone for everybody at that event was strikingly evident. It was a unique reunion that fed all of our souls. Davey’s legacy was never more apparent that in that group of family and friends who have survived the tragedy of losing Davey. Love is and always will be the answer.

Love is an amazing gift from God that is meant to be shared. If you haven’t gotten on the ‘Love you’ train yet, this is your invitation to jump on. It will change your life if you let it.

Miss you, Davey.

Love you.

On May 24, 2026 By Judy GlasserIn When the Worst Happens4 Comments

We Lost a Hero

On May 19, 2026 By Judy GlasserIn When the Worst Happens2 Comments

We lost a hero 10 years ago.

My son, David Glasser, a Phoenix Police Officer was shot and killed in Laveen, Arizona on May 18, 2016 during a burglary attempt. This might confuse you because his official End of Watch is May 19th. But, if you had seen him in his hospital bed on May 18th, you would know like I do that the people-loving, respectful, funny, loyal-to-a-fault man that was Davey was already gone.

Davey had been a Phoenix Police Officer for 12 years and helping people was an integral part of who he was. He told me he liked the fact that he could take dangerous people off the streets of Phoenix, making it a safer and better place to live and raise our families.

Davey loved his family and friends and was well-known for talking about his faith in God. He was also a sports fanatic. The Arizona Cardinals, Diamondbacks and all ASU sports were his favorites.

Davey’s love for people attracted people to him. Because of who he was, he had a lot of friends from all over the metropolitan Phoenix area.

When we lost Davey, the whole city grieved.

As his family and friends, we knew he didn’t say good-bye, he said, ‘love you’. At his funeral, his best friend on his squad, Byrd, shared that Davey had his squad of tough cops all saying ‘love you’ to each other before they left the precinct. His squad said that it felt odd at first but became very important to them after Davey was killed

As a result of Davey’s habit, the last words anybody he cared about heard him say were ‘love you’. This created a legacy of love after he was gone – changing many people’s relationships and lives. If you would like to know more about this story, check out my book on Amazon, “Then I Looked Up: Losing a Child, Finding His Legacy of Love”

Davey’s love for people and his city fueled the need for his family and friends to continue the work he started. The David Glasser Foundation was created to provide opportunities for law enforcement officers to have positive interactions with the kids and families they serve through youth sports. The foundation also sponsors a yearly Shop with a Cop event which helps kids and families in need from Laveen the city where Davey was killed. The David Glasser Foundation has been successfully completing its mission in Phoenix for over 9 years, continuing to make a difference with the people David protected and served.

Davey’s legacy of love is still growing and having a positive on people’s lives as more and more people hear his story. Today and everyday, please take the time to say ‘love you’ to everyone you care about instead of good-bye. None of us know when that will be the last thing we get to say it to that person.

I didn’t know when it was the last time I would be able to say it to Davey – now I’m so glad I said it all the time. His ‘love you’ echoes back to me in my memory and makes me smile as the tears roll down my face.

Miss you, Davey.

Love you!

It’s Really May 18th

My son, David Glasser’s, official End of Watch is May 19, 2016. But the real date he left this earth is May 18.

You would know that as well if you had seen him. His body was hooked up to all kinds of machines that were keeping his lungs moving and his heart beating.

But Davey – the fun, smart, wonderful son, husband, dad, brother and friend – was already gone. He was already with his Father God.

It’s been 10 years since Davey was killed and I’m still very thankful for all of the support we received that night and ever since then.

I am thankful to modern medicine which gave us time the night he was shot to start coming to terms to our new reality. We had several hours to figure out how to start to say good-bye. It helped.

I am thankful that the machines were able to keep his organs alive so that he could give the gift of life to so many other people. Our families have been blessed by other organ donors so we know what an important thing this is. Knowing that helped.

I am thankful for the doctors and nurses who treated Davey with care and respect. They also were very helpful and understanding to those of us who spent the darkest hours of that night in a room next to Davey in unbelief of what was happening. It helped.

I am thankful for the rooms full of police officers and friends at the hospital who prayed for us and supported us through those awful hours. It helped.

I am thankful for the family and friends all over the country who prayed for us through that night. I am thankful for all of the people who didn’t even know us and they prayed for us. I am grateful to all the people who still pray for us. It has helped.

I am thankful for Dave’s squad who, disregarding their own pain, had the worst job of making telephone calls and getting us to the hospital. I am also thankful for the Employee Assistance Unit led by Sgt. Dave Osborne. Both of these teams promised support and they meant it. It really helped.

I am thankful for the entire Phoenix Police Department who supported us that night any way they possibly could. They parked our cars so we could run right into the hospital, they brought food, they picked up family at the airport, they took care of the press, they drove us home, they never left their watch on Dave’s room and much more. They continue to support us and they go out of their way to help the David Glasser Foundation every December with out Shop with a Cop event. It has all helped.

I am thankful for Pastor Mark Grochoki from the church we were attending then, Palm Valley, who somehow found a way through the crowds and lines of police in the hospital that night to pray for us in a small, dark corner of the hospital lobby. It was an oasis of peace in a very long, terrible night. It helped.

I am thankful for the Police Chaplain, Bob Fesmire, who is so clearly called by God to walk families like ours through the most painful hours of our lives. Your words of wisdom cut through the shock and helped us move forward. You prayed for us through the night when we had no words. I will never forget your prayer as we said our last goodbyes before leaving the hospital. I don’t recall the exact words of your prayer but I remember God reaching out through them to wrap his arms around me to comfort me. You were Jesus with skin on that night, my brother. You really helped.

I am thankful for the Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) organization which continues to support us and care for us. I appreciate all the memorials where it is very clear that Davey’s service and sacrifice will never be forgotten. I am thankful for the large number of people who faithfully support the David Glasser Foundation and it’s efforts to continue Davey’s legacy of loving people in his city.

May 18th, 2016 was Davey’s last day on this planet. That was the day he went to his forever home. Now he lives in our hearts and our memories until we see him again in heaven.

I’m not saying that we need to change the date on all the plaques and forms.

I just wanted you to know……..

Miss you, Davey.

Love you.

On May 17, 2026 By Judy GlasserIn When the Worst Happens4 Comments

Ten Years Ago

10 years ago, on Mother’s Day, was the last day I saw Davey’s smile.

It’s hard to believe a decade has passed. Sometimes it feels like yesterday. It reminds me again that I have a ‘before’ part of my life and an ‘after’ part. The before is before Davey was killed and it is filled with precious memories of when my family was whole. I am now in the after part of my life which has a big 6’5″ hole in it.

Some of the best words to describe this last 10 years is – it’s been a bittersweet struggle. My son, David Glasser, a Phoenix Police Officer, was killed in the line of duty on May 19, 2016 – right after Mother’s Day. The horror of that day has overshadowed my Mother’s Day ever since. The permanent, painful changes in my life make my broken heart ache – especially on this day.

Memories of my last Mother’s Day with Davey are burned into my brain. I was told later that he had the opportunity for some off-duty work that day but he turned it down, saying he wanted to spend the day with the ‘mothers’ in his life. That doesn’t surprise me – that’s who he was. He had his priorities straight.

Davey also knew I was alone that day because my husband had taken an emergency flight to Pennsylvania. My husband’s father had just died. Yes, my father-in-law passed away 13 days before our son was killed. Have you ever felt the crushing impact of multiple bombs going off in your life?

When I remember that Mother’s Day, all I can think about is sitting outside at lunch with Davey and his family. I remember what it felt like to hang out with him – to laugh and have fun. I remember how different my world felt with him in it.

My Mother’s Day will never be the same. There is an important person missing.

But then I remember how grateful I am to have my daughter and four gorgeous grand darlings – each one of them is such a blessing in my life! When I focus on them, Mother’s Day starts to sparkle again. All the possibilities! All the new memories to make! I have a lot to celebrate! Watching my daughter as she does an awesome job being a mother to her two small children brings me joy. Watching my grand darlings grow into their own personalities and strengths is awesome. Watching Davey’s children mature has the added joy of seeing glimpses of him as they exhibit traits they inherited from their dad.

If you have experienced the loss of a child, you know the struggle that I’m describing. Dark hours and then the light shines through. Things going smooth….until they don’t. Several days without tears and then a day when it’s hard to stop the waterfall.

Mother’s day – it’s bitter sweet when you have lost a child.

Miss you, Davey.

Love you.