Nassau Police Chief Kevin Canavan remembered for tireless work ethic at wake

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A wake service for three-star Nassau Police Chief of Patrol Kevin Canavan, of Bayport, was held Sunday at Raynor & D’Andrea Funeral Home in Bayport. He died on June 30 from 9/11-related cancer. He was 64 years old. Chief Canavan began his 39-year law enforcement career with the Nassau County Police Department as a recruit and rose through the ranks of police officer, sergeant, lieutenant, captain, deputy inspector, inspector, deputy chief, assistant chief and chief of patrol – the department’s second highest ranking uniformed officer. Chief Canavan was also appointed to many specialized units and served as a helicopter pilot in the aviation unit. He was recently awarded the Theodore Roosevelt Award for his tireless work ethic, even when seriously ill due to complications of a 9/11-related cancer contracted from exposure during the rescue and recovery efforts at ground zero. “He was a guy that led by example, and he succumbed to 9/11-related diseases because he was actually helping people, not just in Nassau County but the whole region, the whole state, and that’s the kind of guy he was,” said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman. The funeral service will be held on Monday at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of the Snow Church in Blue Point. "