He went out into a blizzard so others wouldn’t slip walking into church.
It became his final, selfless act.
Roger McGovern, a retired New York City Police Department sergeant, died Sunday after suffering a heart attack while shoveling snow outside Our Lady of Victory Church in Floral Park, authorities and his family said.
McGovern, 60, stepped out during the height of Sunday’s snowstorm to clear walkways at the church, where he served as an usher and was active in the Knights of Columbus. He collapsed while shoveling and was later pronounced dead, police told News 12 Long Island.
A married father of three girls, McGovern was clearing “paths so others could safely get to church — a quiet act of service that says everything about who he was,” his cousin, Brendan McGovern, said. “Our family is heartbroken.”
McGovern served with the NYPD until 2008. In retirement, he remained closely tied to his faith and community, ushering each week at the noon Sunday Mass at Our Lady of Victory, his cousin said. He was a 1979 graduate of Our Lady of Lourdes School and a 1983 alumnus of St. Francis Preparatory School.
Word of his death spread quickly Sunday afternoon and night, prompting tributes from parishioners, fellow Knights of Columbus members and former colleagues.
“Everyone in Floral Park knew him,” friend Nicholas Pierro wrote in a Facebook tribute.
The Floral Park church held a virtual rosary service in McGovern’s honor Sunday night.
OBIT: Retired NYPD Sergeant Roger McGovern, 60, formerly assigned to the Detective Bureau Latent Print Section, died on January 25, 2026, while shoveling snow at Our Lady of Victory church in Floral Park, New York. Known for his service as an usher and member of the Knights of… pic.twitter.com/zB0pkcsX0o
— Blue Lives Matter (@RetiredNYCPD) January 26, 2026
McGovern is survived by his wife, Finola, and their daughters, Ailish, Leah and Dara.
Funeral arrangements are still being finalized, the family said. A wake will be held at the Thomas F. Dalton Funeral Home, 29 Atlantic Ave. in Floral Park, followed by a funeral Mass at Our Lady of Victory Church.
Top: Roger McGovern (Facebook)
