Thursday, October 1, 2026
Nassau County Police Officer Alexa Crimaudo knew something was wrong with her body.
She was experiencing body aches, exhaustion and constant illness. After months of trying to solve what was wrong with her body, a CT scan revealed enlarged lymph nodes in her chest. She found out that not only were they enlarged in her chest, but her neck as well at a pet scan in June 2024.
Crimudo received a diagnosis of stage 2 classic Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in July of that year; she had to decide between treating the cancer right away or delaying it to begin in vitro fertilization.
She chose to move forward with IVF last August, however she was hospitalized for five days for pain management because of a complication from ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, a condition where the ovaries become swollen and painful due to an exaggerated response to excess hormones used to stimulate egg growth according to the Mayo Clinic.
Crimaudo began chemotherapy two days after her August 20 release from Winthrop Hospital and completed her treatment in November 2024. During her three months of chemotherapy she only used eight sick days, she was told that the cancer was in remission in December of last year.
“The courage it takes to wear this uniform each day is only matched by the strength it takes to rise up after being knocked down,” Crimaudo said. She also thanked her family, friends and members of the Nassau County Police Department.
Crimaudo alongside Suffolk County Police Department Detective Timothy Thrane were the 31st recipients of the Theodore Roosevelt Police Award, given out by the Theodore Roosevelt Association.
The two law enforcement officials were honored at a ceremony at Sagamore Hill on June 12 at a ceremony that included elected officials as well as the commissioners and members of each police department.
“Alexa, we are so proud of you, because you had to endure these treatments and this terrible, terrible illness,” Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said. “You overcame it and you did it with bravery, dedication, and distinction.”
The award is given annually to officers nationwide who have overcome significant adversity similar to how Roosevelt overcame the severe asthma that plagued him as a child through improving his lifestyle and dedicating himself to physical fitness.
“This is an event forward to each and every year, and it’s supported by so many citizens in and around Long Island,” Jonathan Parker, superintendent of the Sagamore Hill National Historic Site said. He described Sagamore Hill as “a home that was deeply active as to the local community” and added that” home, family, honor, public service,” were core values held.
Thrane, the Suffolk award recipient, was struck by a drunk driver in November 2021. He sustained several serious injuries after being hit, including a skull fracture, a life-threatening brain bleed, fractures in his arm as well as hand and torn knee ligaments.
Thrane spent nearly a month in a coma after suffering setbacks from his surgeries. He returned to work full time in October 2022 and was promoted to detective in November 2023.
