We often see police officers making the news for a variety of negative reasons. This causes us to forget that cops are human beings the same as us, they just have a harder job that requires them to be objective to the situations in front of them.
They have one primary mandate, "to protect and serve", that's why what Officer Lindsey Bittorf of Rock County, Wisconsin did is leaving so many people speechless.
This past February, Officer Bittorf came across a Facebook post from Kristi Goll. Goll was grasping at straws as she looked for a kidney for her nine-year-old son, Jackson Arneson.
"I couldn't imagine her frustration," says Bittorf, who has a 2-year-old son named Luca. "Every parent wants to save their child."
Bittorf found herself continually thinking about the plight of the family which prompted her to send in a blood sample to see if she was a match for the young boy.
She then messaged Goll to let her know what people were listening to her heart-wrenching plea for help.
"My mother told me it takes a village to raise a child, so I told Kristi, "˜I'm just another person in your village trying to help your child,' " she says.
Months of testing later, it turned out that she was an absolute perfect match for Jackson. Immediately after getting the results back, Bittorf and her husband (also a deputy sheriff) surprised Jackson and his mother with the news.
The families then spent the next few weeks hanging out, leading up to the transplant surgery. The surgery was resounding success and the first visitor that Jackson had was his guardian angel.
"He calls me his best friend now," she adds. "It's amazing that we went from being complete strangers to best friends."
Bittorf and Goll text daily now, and a true family connection has blossomed out of this truly touching story.
"I can't thank Lindsey enough," she says. "She's one of the family now."
How far would you go to save the life of a complete stranger?