ORLANDO, Fla. – For the first time after laying her husband to rest, the widow of Orlando Police Officer Kevin Valencia opened up about how tough it’s been trying to move forward and how she’s trying to stay strong for their young sons.
Meghan Valencia described how her family endured together.
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She said her faith is keeping her strong and also being a supportive mother for her two young sons who are 8 and 3 years old.
“I’m humbled that I get to be the called the wife of a hero. My kids, they’re the children of a true hero,” Meghan Valencia said. “I had a vision of what my life would look like and I lost an entire future -- and I don’t know what it looks like anymore for me.”
Her husband died a hero on March 15 after an almost three-year battle trying to recover after being shot in the head during a standoff in June 2018 while trying to save four children.
She said it was so difficult watching her eldest son salute his father’s casket at his funeral last week.
“It was really hard. An 8-year-old should never have to do that, especially a day before his birthday,” Meghan Valencia said.
Meghan Valencia described her husband’s medical condition days before he died. She said he quickly deteriorated after months of small miracles.
She said her husband’s lungs became infected, leading to seizures and other issues.
“He was admitted into the hospital with a 107 fever,” Meghan Valencia said. “He couldn’t breathe properly and just the infection and everything, it took him very fast.”
Before he died there were two and half years of improvements that she said doctors called miraculous.
“His physical therapist would help him stand. They were working on walking with him,” Meghan Valencia said. “He was making noises and he would mouth words, so they thought he was going to be able to talk at some point.”
Meghan Valencia knows moving forward will be painful.
“I lost my best friend, I’ve known Kevin since I was 12 years old,” she said.
She said she’s so grateful for all the support she’s received from the Orlando Police Department and the entire Central Florida community.
“I’ve had so much of an outpouring of love and support and stories that people have told me,” she said. “This is kind of my way I get to say thank you. In a lot of ways, I get to express that the legacy that Kevin leaves behind -- it doesn’t stop, it didn’t stop on March 15.”