PHOENIX — In the very back row of the brass section of the Happy Valley Romanian Pentecostal band, you may be able to spot Tyler Moldovan - one of the tuba players.
This past weekend, he was part of a performance at an evening service.
He performed days before he went to work as a Phoenix police officer and responded to a call that ended with him being shot eight times.
“This comes as a complete shock to us,” said Claud Olar, one of the band directors with the church.
“We've known Tyler since he was born,” he said.
He says Tyler's grandfather was one of the founding pastors. The church now has about 2,800 members.
The current Senior Pastor, Cornel Avram, tells us he was baptized under the same roof where he was recently married back in May.
Avram sent us a photo of Tyler back in 2009 carrying big scissors to cut a ribbon on a new sanctuary. He said Tyler was reluctant to do the ribbon cutting at first but eventually said, "If God wants me to do that - then I will."
Olar says Tyler carries a devoted work ethic and loyalty to everything he does.
“He did that through school, elementary, high school, the police academy, and working full time,” said Olar.
The pastor tells us he asked Tyler why he picked law enforcement after he graduated... Tyler told him, “to protect and serve.”
“The best way we can honor him, is to do what he loved - that's playing,” said Olar.
The community can donate to help Officer Moldovan and his family through the Phoenix Police Foundation, an organization aimed to provide financial assistance to the department's employees and their families.
As of Wednesday, Officer Moldovan remains in critical condition, according to his family and the Phoenix Police Department.
