Denver police Lt. Joe Ferraro, a longtime trainer on the force, died Saturday at a care center after an 18-month battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 56.
“Joe had tremendous faith in God and tremendous faith in the Denver Police Department,” said his boss, Capt. Eric Rubin, head of the police training bureau.
Services will include visitation from 1 to 4 p.m. today at the Archdiocese of Denver Mortuary; a rosary at 6 p.m. today and a funeral Mass at noon Friday, both at Shrine of St. Anne Catholic Church, West 58th Avenue and Webster Street, in Arvada.
Ferraro, who worked until April 3, “was a person everyone liked. He was multitalented, but his greatest talent was working with people. He just put them at ease,” said Rubin.
“He changed my career,” said Cpl. Al Archuleta of Brighton. “He harangued me until I went into the training bureau.”
Rubin said Ferraro worked in both departments of the training bureau: the academy and the firearms division, which he headed at one time. He joined the bureau in 2000.
Before that, Ferraro was a field training coordinator in District 1; a patrol officer in Districts 2 and 4; a field training officer in District 2; and a shift commander in District 5.
He also was acting captain of the training bureau for a year.
Ferraro’s main outside interest was gardening.
“He loved to raise flowers and vegetables,” said his wife, Gloria. “This year, he was too sick to enjoy” the early spring flowers, she said.
Joseph A. Ferraro was born in New York on Dec. 17, 1951, and after high school moved to Colorado to train in a police cadet program at Trinidad State Junior College.
It was there he met Gloria Shablo of Englewood, also a student. They both played in the college band — he the trumpet and she the clarinet. They were married April 8, 1972.
They moved to Denver, where Joe Ferraro finished school at Metropolitan State College.
He worked for the Denver Parks Police and then joined the Denver Police Department.
“He had always dreamed of going to the police academy,” his wife said.
Ferraro received the department’s Purple Heart, two chief’s citations, the Mayor’s Certificate of Appreciation and five official commendations.
In addition to his wife, Ferraro is survived by his son, Vincent, of Arvada; and his daughter, Angela Ferraro, of Denver.
Virginia Culver: 303-954-1223 or vculver@denverpost.com
