Mayor Attends Wake for William Pena; Comforts Family
FEBRUARY 19 -- Newly-elected New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio came to the wake for slain Bus Operator William Pena at the United Nations Chapel on First Avenue and 44th Street this evening. He arrived at about 6:30 with his security detail and quickly entered the chapel, taking no questions from the press. Once inside, he joined a room packed full of mourners, both family and transit workers. He joined the line in front of the casket and spoke in low tones to Brother Pena's widow, Nancy, and to his daughter, Gabriela, and then stood in silence for a time before the open coffin where Pena rested. It was the first time in memory that a sitting Mayor has visited a transit worker's wake. TWU Local 100 President Samuelsen and other top officers spent hours at the wake, speaking to many of the approximately 700 TWU and ATU members who came, most brought in by buses detailed from depots. Also in attendance was ATU Local 726 President Danny Cassella, bringing fraternal greetings from our brothers and sisters on Staten Island. A number of uniformed police also attended, along with William Pena's sister, who is a police officer. 