Family, friends mourn loss of McKeesport Officer Sean Sluganski during funeral Mass

“I’m a cop.”

With those simple words, Sean Sluganski reaffirmed who he was, what he stood for and how he wanted to be viewed — not only by the public but also by his devoted fiancé, his adoring daughter, his doting mother, his loving sisters.

And those with whom he served.

He was a protector — of his loved ones, of his community, of right over wrong.

And he was a cop to his core, to the day he was fatally shot while responding to a domestic incident.

“I tried to get him to do anything else as a career,” Shela Sluganski told hundreds of people gathered Tuesday at St. Albert the Great Church in Baldwin to mourn her brother, a McKeesport police officer killed in the line of duty.

She recounted how he excelled at carpentry, electrical work and just about anything he tried.

“I asked him … why he couldn’t do something else, why he loved being an officer so much,” Shela said. “He looked at me and said, ‘Enough. Are you done? I’m not going to do any of that other stuff.

“‘And don’t call me an officer to people.’

“‘I’m a cop.’”

Sluganski, 32, of McKeesport was shot and killed Feb. 6 while responding to a domestic dispute between a man and his mother on Wilson Street.

McKeesport Officer Chuck Thomas also was wounded.

On Tuesday, hundreds of law enforcement officers from across the state gathered to celebrate Sluganski’s life.

Described as kind and empathetic, Sluganski had a great sense of humor and passion for the job.

“Slug,” as he was affectionately known, previously worked as an officer in Whitaker and Charleroi and was taking criminal justice classes at PennWest California to finish his bachelor’s degree.

The funeral Mass began just before 12:30 p.m. and ended about 90 minutes later. A procession of hundreds of law enforcement vehicles left the church about 3 p.m. to begin the windy route through Baldwin, Brentwood, Pleasant Hills, West Mifflin and finally McKeesport for one last pass before Sluganski was laid to rest at Jefferson Memorial Cemetery.

His body arrived at the cemetery on Curry Hollow Road at 4:32 p.m. End of Watch, a somber tradition on emergency dispatch channels, was called at 5:58 p.m.

Shela Sluganski said her brother would have been excited to know that schools were canceled for his funeral and that the streets were closed.

“He was probably loving that,” she said. “Sean would want us to celebrate him and his life.”

‘The best person I’ve ever known’

Joining Shela in eulogizing Sluganski were his fiancée, Chelsea Cancilla, and two fellow officers, Frank Durante and Thomas.

Each of them described the fallen officer as funny and kind, and a man who loved helping others.

“He’s the only person who could ever make me feel safe,” Cancilla said, “even when the world was crumbling around me.”

In a book he gave her for Mother’s Day last year, Cancilla said, Sluganski wrote to her: “You will always be such an inspiration and amazing role model for Haven. In a world that can be so cruel, Haven is so lucky to have you as her mama.

“Never doubt yourself, darling. We love you.”

Cancilla recounted the stories she has heard over the past week about Sluganski from his colleagues and friends, each one confirming her fiancé’s selflessness.

“He was and always will be the best person I’ve ever known,” she said.

Sluganski did everything with calm and enthusiasm.

“He never complained about life, even in times that he had every single right to,” Cancilla said.

Sluganski was known for being a dedicated friend who was always there for people in need — first and foremost their young daughter, Haven, she continued. His spirit will live on through her, Cancilla said.

“Not a day will pass that she will not be reminded of the person he was,” she said.

Officer Frank Durante’s first interaction with him was when Sluganski had just joined the McKeesport Police Department. They were at a night-turn roll call when everyone else refused to take on the new guy for training.

“He was just sitting there with a smile on his face,” Durante said, but no one volunteered to train him. “I felt bad for Slug, so I stood up and said, ‘I guess you’re bleeping stuck with me.’”

It was the first step in forming a bond as close as brothers, Durante said.

Talking to Sluganski directly, Durante said, “My son loves you so much. I want to say thank you for being a part of his life and embracing him as your own son. My wife loved you with all her heart, even though she would get mad when we constantly talked on the phone about work.”

Thomas, who is recovering from last week’s attack, was the last to speak. He said he tried to write remarks for the funeral but could not.

Instead, he spoke freely, noting how he and Sluganski instantly hit it off — sharing a love for Flaming Hot Cheetos and funny videos.

Thomas said he has been lost since Sluganski’s death.

“My life has been shattered ever since,” he said. “The Sluganski family has embraced me, and it has been hard to look at them sometimes. I don’t have the answers that they want, and I don’t have the answers that I want right now.”

‘A blessing to the people’

Bishop David Zubik of the Pittsburgh Diocese, who presided over the funeral Mass, began by encouraging those in attendance to think about one way “Officer Sean” touched their lives — “for whatever he did to help you, inspire you.”

The service included Bible readings from Ecclesiastes and Corinthians, as well as Allegheny County Sheriff’s Commander Ricky Manning singing “Shepherd Me O God.”

As the Rev. Stephen Kresak began the homily, he said he understood the struggles of Sluganski’s loved ones “to trust that God even knows what he’s doing sometimes.”

“I know, I struggle with those same feelings,” the priest said.

But, Kresak continued, those who loved him should follow Sluganski’s example.

“Worrying won’t add a single moment to our lives,” Kresak said. “I believe Sean knew this. And he did his best to put these words into practice in his own life. He lived life as if every day could be his last by letting go, letting God and doing his best to love others.”

Kresak also quoted Bob Marley: “‘The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth or fame he acquires but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.’

“Officer Sean Sluganski is that man.”

Kresak said Sluganski was aware of the blessings in his life.

“And in his own unique ways, he was willing to share those blessings with everyone he knew,” Kresak said. “It’s what made him a blessing to the people he encountered.”

Sluganski dedicated his life’s work to righteousness, the priest continued: “Working to see wrongs righted and helping to build right relationships between others for their own sake, to find peace in this life.

“It’s why he loved what he did, and why he strove to learn as much as he can, how to do it even better.”

Kresak also spoke of mercy.

“I imagine Sean would tell us if he were here today celebrating this Mass for someone else, that there is no greater act in this world than to forgive and show mercy and pray for someone who is causing us a great deal of grief and pain. As difficult as that is, there is no more courageous act than to be able to extend the mercy that Christ extends to us.”

‘They are in our hearts and prayers’

As officers gathered outside the church Tuesday morning, the mood was somber. People waiting in line could be seen wiping tears from their eyes.

Drums and bagpipes before the funeral for fallen McKeesport officer Sean Sluganski at St. Albert the Great Chuch in Baldwin borough. The body has been taken inside, the funeral service should begin shortly. pic.twitter.com/2s3gyFRzyU

— Ryan Deto (@RyanDeto) February 14, 2023

O’Hara patrolman David Harajda told reporters that Sluganski’s death was sobering and that he was at a loss for words in how to respond.

“I just want to remind the family that they are in our hearts and prayers, and we are here in force to pay respects,” he said.

Jim Bolich of Baldwin was already on Churchview Avenue around 9:30 a.m. waving his American flag to greet a steady stream of police cars.

State troopers, police from nearby municipalities and officers from as far as Erie were lining up for the funeral procession.

Bolich, whose son graduated from Baldwin High School with Sluganski, said he wanted to show his support.

“It’s my civic duty to respect and honor the police officers,” he said. “They do a fantastic job.”

Police officers are arriving for fallen McKeesport officer Sean Sluganski’s funeral in Baldwin Borough just outside of Pittsburgh. Sluganski was killed in the line of duty. A procession to follows. Follow me @JuliaFelton16 @MarucaJulia @KristinaS_Trib and @TribLIVE for updates pic.twitter.com/qd3IDNmEaV

— Ryan Deto (@RyanDeto) February 14, 2023

Bolich said he sympathizes with local officers who have already seen two of their members killed in the line of duty this year.

“I think police need more support and more encouragement. I think they’re in a line of duty. They’re here to serve and protect, but we have to serve and protect them also,” he said.

Theresa Wild, of Baldwin, lives near Sluganski’s family, and her children grew up with him.

“He was just the sweetest kid,” she said as she waited for the funeral procession to reach the church. “He’d just do everything for everybody.”

Wild recalled how Sluganski wanted to work in a position where he could make a difference.

“It breaks my heart,” she said.

Earl Meiers, of Baldwin, also watched as police arrived at the church. His son played hockey and attended high school with Sluganski.

“It’s such a shame it takes something like this to bring everybody together,” he said, calling the support from the hundreds of law enforcement officers descending on the community “unbelievable.”

About two dozen people waited in a grassy area just outside the church parking lot, solemnly watching officers arrive. Some shouted out “thank you for your service” as law enforcement passed by.

‘Inspiring and saddening’

In McKeesport, ahead of the procession arriving there, a quiet atmosphere hung over downtown, broken only by passing trains and motorists honking horns while driving past the police station on Lysle Boulevard.

Melissa Ernst, a community development secretary with the city of McKeesport, was out by 11:30 a.m. handing out American flags to local businesses along the procession route.

“I don’t have them all. I split them, but there are probably about a thousand (flags,)” she said. “Each box has 300, and I gave a box of 300 away. I hit all the businesses that I knew on the way down here and just handed them batches of flags.”

Some businesses, like Eat’n Park, reached out to Ernst on Facebook to get the flags. Also widely distributed were yard signs that read “We Support Our Police,” which have been sold in local businesses since last week.

Ernst handed out a stack of signs that were donated by the city. Proceeds from the signs go to benefit Sluganski’s family, she said.

“It’s terrible,” Ernst said of Sluganski’s death. She met him once but didn’t know him personally.

White Oak resident Kim Dunlevy took a sign from Ernst’s bundle. She sported a handmade, beaded blue and black police ribbon on her jacket.

“It’s saddening that it takes an event like this, but the community support, the solidarity of the police officers, the firefighters, all the local precincts coming in and taking over for McKeesport Police to give them time to grieve has brought the community so close together,” Dunlevy said.

She attended two vigils at her church, Mary Mother of God, for the officers over the last week.

“There has been an outpouring of the community and support,” she said. “It’s just inspiring and saddening at the same time.”

Up the street, Brandi Good, a McKeesport resident, unloaded a handful of blue and silver star balloons from her car. She tied two to a fence near the police station and said she planned to release the other eight as the procession passed by.

Good lives three blocks from where the shooting took place. She worked from home Tuesday morning, as the doctor’s office she works at on Lebanon Church Road was closed for the procession.

“Most of the McKeesport Police Department, I went to high school with. I am from here. I graduated from here,” Good said, adding that she is good friends with Thomas, who was injured, and has spoken with him since.

In front of the police station, a cluster of relatives of McKeesport Officer Dan Goughnour, who lived near Sluganski, stood holding signs and flags while Goughnour was at the funeral. Gavin, 8, Gracelyn, 2, and Gannon, 5, Goughnour’s children, made their signs themselves.

“They were neighbors and co-workers and friends,” said Kathy Tagaloe, Officer Goughnour’s mother.

Sarah Maher of Liberty Borough, who works at the UPMC McKeesport hospital emergency room, stood along Lysle Boulevard with her dog, Sadie, around 2 p.m. Maher said she headed over right after her work shift ended.

She met Sluganski a handful of times at the emergency room.

“He was a really, really nice guy,” she said. “(I came) to support them. It’s a big loss.”