Supervisory Special Agent Gregory J. Rahoi

I want to say that I never knew Supervisory Special Agent Rahoi, although I very much wish that I had. I’m not a cop or an FBI agent, but out of curiosity I looked at the Hostage Rescue Team page on Wikipedia once and took note of the “Casualties” section. When I read details of who Agent Rahoi was, I almost couldn’t believe it. Prior to joining the Bureau, not only was the man a police officer, but a trained paramedic and firefighter in addition to having a law degree. Even with all of the time that those endeavors must have taken, he still managed to get hired by the Bureau before he was 30 years old!

And as if simply being an FBI agent weren’t enough of an accomplishment, the man joined the renowned Hostage Rescue Team, this country’s most elite tactical unit outside the military. And he didn’t just serve stateside, he deployed several times to Iraq; no doubt this man was driven to go far above what was required of him. He was one of the elite few who are sent in to rescue innocents when a situation spirals out of control. How many of us could have that level of courage to knowingly go into life-or-death scenarios on a regular basis?

I never knew this man, though as I look at the experience he had and the things he did while he was here, I’m reminded that some among us are capable of being truly great. I’m someone who has often contemplated joining the military and/or federal law enforcement, because I feel the need to serve in some way. I don’t know that I could ever be a fraction of the man that Agent Rahoi was, but I know that I’m a better man for having been made aware of who he was and what he did while he was here.

Rest In Peace, Greg. Perhaps I’ll meet you someday. I hope that I’ll be a man worthy of standing by your side.

John Soares
Someone Who Wishes I Had Known Him

December 10, 2020