David Lim

David Waymond Lim is a first generation American. He was born in New York City's Chinatown on September 2, 1956, more than a decade after his parents immigrated to the United States from the Toison province of China. When they arrived the Lim family opened a restaurant and began forming their new lives in America. Six years later, in 1962, Mr. Lim's family moved to Rockaway, Queens New York where he attended St. Mary Star of the Sea grammar school until 1970.

Mr. Lim graduated from Lawrence High School in Nassau County and went on to attend Queensborough College & Farmingdale University.

It was in that tiny Chinatown restaurant where Mr. Lim first knew he wanted to be a police officer. From a young age he developed a special interest in law enforcement, as local policemen would often eat at his family's restaurant. Mr. Lim learned early that the greatest duty of an officer was to protect the citizens and enforce the law. Now, as a Port Authority Police Officer, Mr. Lim continues a tradition of law enforcement service where his commitment to the community can be felt daily.

A police officer since April 7, 1980, Mr. Lim has been assigned to many commands during his tenure. His training in structural fire fighting, crime prevention and elevator evacuation gave him the necessary skill set to be assigned to the World Trade Center for most of his career. It was not until 1996, when TWA flight 800 went down, that Mr. Lim decided to become a part of the New York City K-9 Unit.

To become a K-9 officer, Mr. Lim attended class for nearly three months at the 341st TRS and at Lackland Air Force base. Along with that training, he became certified as an explosives detection team with his first K-9 partner, Lena, a yellow Labrador Retriever. Following his training, Mr. Lim spent the next three years stationed at any one of the three international airports in the New York vicinity.

Unfortunately, Lena, his K-9 partner, had to retire due to an injury, and in March of 2000, Mr. Lim trained a new Labrador Retriever, Sirius. The new team was reassigned to the World Trade Center and given the responsibilities of securing arrivals of VIPS, checking unattended packages and vehicles and searching trucks as they entered the World Trade Center complex. .

During his assignment at the WTC Mr. Lim had been fortunate to meet some very influential people. Mr. Lim recalls meeting the former U.S. President, Bill Clinton, and being photographed with him at the WTC Heliport.

On another occasion he met Minnesota Governor, Jesse Ventura, as he was securing a Borders bookstore for his book signing. Although these encounters are unforgettable for Mr. Lim, he believes the most important achievement of his career is the fact that no explosives were ever activated during his watch with Sirius.

Mr. Lim currently lives in Lynbrook, New York with his wife Diane and their two children Debra and Michael. Since the September 11 disaster, he has been stationed at Port Newark where he is training another dog for duty.

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