Thursday, October 1, 2026
Lynbrook Police Officer Patrick Kelly immediately sprang into action when someone shouted “Call 911” in an American Airlines lounge at LaGuardia Airport last November, saving the life of an 88-year-old man who had collapsed.
Kelly, 41, a 13-year veteran with the Lynbrook Police Department and a lieutenant colonel with the U.S. Marine Corps, rushed to aid the man who had become unresponsive. Kelly, a lifelong Oyster Bay resident and Marine Corps reservist, performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation, which helped the elderly man breathe again and regain a pulse.
For his life-saving actions, the Town of Oyster Bay honored Kelly with a ceremony at its July 21 board meeting, recognizing him and other first responders whose quick thinking and training saved lives in three separate incidents.
The recognition also highlighted the training and experience Kelly has brought to the Lynbrook Police Department throughout his career.
“I heard somebody say, ‘Call 911,’ and you could tell there was some commotion,” Kelly recounted after the ceremony. “It was obvious immediately in the moment — you could tell this guy was in trouble.”
The incident occurred on Nov. 1 in LaGuardia’s Terminal B, while Kelly was waiting for a flight to New Orleans on military assignment to the 4th Marine Division’s headquarters.
He said he found the man sitting beside his wife on a bench, unconscious. After determining that the man had no pulse and was not breathing, Kelly carefully laid him down and began to perform CPR.
“It was clear that he was in distress,” Kelly said. “I couldn’t feel a pulse. He wasn’t breathing. He wasn’t responsive.”
After several rounds of chest compressions, the man began taking what Kelly described as a single deep, labored breath. A weak pulse returned, and Kelly placed him in a recovery position as the man began vomiting. A Port Authority police officer arrived shortly afterward, followed by emergency medical personnel, who transported the man to a hospital.
Kelly later found out that the man survived.
“I’ve spoken with the wife several times,” he said. “Her husband did make it. You know, he’s not very well, but he is alive.”
Kelly credited his military and law enforcement experience for his instincts to provide immediate assistance.
“There weren’t a lot of folks that looked like they were inclined to get involved, either,” he said. “So, it was really right place, right time for all of us to be able to help this guy.”
Kelly began serving in the Marine Corps in 2004 and joined its reserves in 2011. He recently returned from his fourth deployment to the Middle East on July 1, where he took part in Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq, as well as military operations against Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury.
Following a July 11 change-of-command ceremony, Kelly assumed command of the 2nd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, now based at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn.
Military service runs deep in Kelly’s family. Relatives in both the Navy and Marines inspired him to serve, he said, and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 reinforced that decision while he was a student at Chaminade High School in Mineola.
During the Oyster Bay ceremony, Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino praised Kelly’s decisive action.
“His selfless and skilled actions represent the best in all of us: kindness, compassion, the ability to act decisively and courageously when a fellow citizen in need,” Saladino said. “Officer Kelly is truly an American hero.”
While grateful for the recognition, Kelly said he hoped it would also reflect positively on the Marine Corps, the Lynbrook Police Department and law enforcement as a whole.
“It’s nice to know that something like this could bring some attention to those communities,” he said.
Lynbrook Police Chief Brian Paladino said Kelly’s actions exemplified the professionalism and dedication he has consistently demonstrated throughout his career with the department.
“I am not surprised by Police Officer Kelly’s actions,” Paladino said. “He is well trained and a very capable person and always represents the Lynbrook Police Department in shining fashion. Pat has received departmental recognition for this event, and the Lynbrook community is so proud to call him one of our own.”
Kelly said he also hoped his experience would encourage more people to learn CPR. He urged families to discuss emergency plans and practice basic responses before a crisis occurs.
“You will save someone’s life, potentially, and it could be a stranger, but it could be in your own home, too,” he said. “If they’re important to you, I would recommend making sure you have a good working knowledge of CPR.”
Kelly was one of several first responders recognized by the town. Bay constables Sgt. Carmine Montesano and Kim Allstadt were honored for rescuing a missing swimmer near Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park and Marina in June.
In addition, Bay constables Robert Wallace, James Altadona III and William Monjardo were recognized for using tourniquets and other emergency care to save the life of an off-duty Suffolk County police officer who suffered catastrophic injuries in a boating accident in Amity Cut, a tidal waterway connecting South Oyster Bay and the Great South Bay, on July 1.
