Combo #3: Sometimes, people bond over the smallest things.

Everytime I pass the Taco Bell on Dyckman Street in my Inwood neighborhood, I think of Steve Bonano. He died just over 10 years from a blood cancer relating to his work at Ground Zero. Steve commanded the NYPD’s Emergency Services Unit.

A Navy veteran who once headed the NYPD’s Aviation unit, Steve was a three-star chief with his career on the rise. Many say that he would have been the first Hispanic NYC police commissioner. Instead, a plaque was dedicated in his honor at the 23rd Precinct in 2018.

He died a week away from his wedding. Steve’s future brother-in-law was Larry Rivera who I spent many hours riding around with as part of my book, 23rd Precinct: The Job. Larry died in 2019, also from a 9/11 related illness.

Memories are often kept alive through small remembrances. This one happens to be combo #3. But ordering at Taco Bell is now through an electronic kiosk with self-serve Pepsi, the menu has expanded to include Doritos Locos Tacos, something called a Crunch Wrap, and Combo #3 is now a Burrito Supreme with a taco and a drink.

Sometimes people bond over the smallest things.

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