Decker's Nursery Owner Apologizes For NYPD Funeral Controversy

GREENLAWN, NY—Conrad Decker, the owner of Decker's Nursery in Greenlawn, has issued a public statement in the wake of controversy this week. Decker originally declined to allow the Greenlawn Fire Department to use the nursery's parking lot to place a flag arch for fallen NYPD officer Anastasios Tsakos' funeral, which was held Tuesday.

Tsakos, of East Northport, was killed by a drunken driver on April 27. The Greenlawn Fire Department reportedly asked Decker's Nursery for the use of the parking lot for the funeral, and Decker's initial refusal triggered a social media backlash.

The funeral was held Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Paraskevi Greek Orthodox Shrine Church in Greenlawn, and Pulaski Road between Broadway and Stony Hollow Road in Greenlawn was closed from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Decker issued a statement on his business Facebook page Monday. Almost 2,000 comments showed mixed reactions, with many questioning if Decker only apologized after overwhelming public negative feedback. Others thanked the business owner for his contrition.

Greenlawn Fire Department reported on Monday that Decker then reached out to offer the parking lot space.

Decker's statement read:

Hello, my name is Conrad Decker and I’m the owner of Decker’s Nursery. I wanted to take a minute to address a situation that has arisen in the past 24 hours that has quickly put our organization in the middle of quite a bit of discussion online. I’d like to try and provide a little more context so everyone has all of the information about what transpired.

Before I get too far along, however, I personally want to send my heartfelt condolences to the family of slain officer Anastasios Tsakos. While we do not know him or his family personally, based on the outpouring of support, it’s obvious that he was a great man, a great father and a great police officer. It is truly a tragedy and our prayers are with his family and the NYPD as we’re sure everyone is suffering from his loss.

Additionally, please let me clear up one very important point. I am NOT “anti-cop” and the Decker’s Nursery organization as a whole does not support “anti-cop” sentiment in any way, shape or form. If you’ve known us for any amount of time, you know we are in fact supporters of our local law enforcement officers, our first responders and our active military and veterans. We often try to find ways to give back to them when we can. We believe they are one of a kind individuals and we appreciate the work that they do. Unfortunately, there seems to be a lot of incorrect information being shared that has framed this situation as one that is anti-cop and I assure you that is not the case.

I’d like to provide a little bit of backstory. Late last week we were informed by the local fire department that they would be shutting down Pulaski Road for upwards of two days and that we would be forced to close our business during that time. In our industry, this is the busiest time of year and as a business, we provide jobs to a large number of staff who rely on their employment with us to support their families. This business is our livelihood and the way that it was presented to us left us with a lot of concerns. I was genuinely concerned about the outcome of being forced to turn customers away for two days. We were then asked if we would be willing to allow the Fire Department to use our parking lot during this time for the funeral procession.

What resulted was unfortunate. My response to that request was driven by an emotional, knee jerk reaction. I was just told that I was going to be non-operational for two days and I was frustrated and upset and, at the time, I was unwilling to co-operate. This was not an anti-cop issue, it was a small business owner trying to stay in business issue.

I realize that my emotions got the best of me and that my response lacked compassion and understanding for what these officers are going through. I admit that I could have handled the situation better and for that, I’m truly sorry. My intention was not to be disrespectful.

Not long after this, we began receiving a number of threats to our business and staff. For safety reasons, we temporarily parked our trucks, overnight, in our front lot to prevent this from escalating any further.

I have already reached to our local Fire Department and we are on good terms. We have offered to allow them to park their trucks in our lot if they need to and they have provided support in return.

Decker’s Nursery has been a part of the Greenlawn, Huntington and larger Suffolk County community for 12 years now. We understand why this situation would cause disappointment but we truly hope that you’ll allow us to earn back your trust and respect.

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