Mass. Officer Sends Flowers to Grieving Daughter

A Massachusetts woman wants the world to know about a police officer's gracious act of kindness.

Robin Sutherland was in the middle of a busy work day when she got the call that her 90-year-old mother had taken a turn for the worse and that it was time to set up hospice care.

“The nurse practitioner called and said she had to introduce herself to me and talk about a do not resuscitate order, but we really needed to talk,” Sutherland said. 

Sutherland, concerned about her mother, then hopped in her car and was heading to speak to the nurse.

As she was driving she said she “was just tooling around distracted” when an officer waved at her and pulled her over.

“It was when I was pulled over and I had a few minutes to think while she was checking my background. It occurred to me how many deaths we've had in our family and I was really going to be losing my mom,” Sutherland said. “The tears were coming down my face.”

“I felt bad. I came back to the car and [Sutherland] was crying,” said Officer Ashley Catatao.

The office let her off with a warning, and sent flowers to Sutherland’s home.

“My parents raised me to help people and to be there for them and if you have the position or if you have the ability to help them, you do it,” Catatao said during a press conference.

Sutherland said she was shocked when the flowers arrived at her house later that day, with a note signed, ‘the officer that pulled you over this morning.’

“My eyes welled up with tears because that is so shockingly thoughtful,” Sutherland said.

Catatao acknowledged Sutherland’s grief saying, “You're never ready to say goodbye to a parent and that hit home because I still have both my parents and I’m a parent myself. I just felt bad because I can't imagine the pain she was going through, to have to say goodbye to a parent, especially your mother. You could be 60-years old yourself and you're still going to need your mother.”

“I thought this is something people need to know about because you only hear bad stories, typically, Sutherland shared.