CHICAGO — The typically busy stretch of south Western Avenue outside St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel was quiet Monday morning.

Instead of tractor trailers hauling freight, the thoroughfare was lined with scores of police vehicles from cities and towns across northern Illinois.

Hundreds of Chicago cops and their counterparts from other nearby municipalities gathered at St. Rita for the funeral mass of Luis Huesca, the 30-year-old CPD officer who was fatally shot earlier this month as he returned to his home in Gage Park.

Bagpipers played hymns and television news helicopters circled overhead as those in attendance stood on St. Rita’s north lawn and silently saluted while the hearse carrying Huesca’s remains arrived at the church.

The chapel at St. Rita — a regular setting for first responder funerals — soon filled to capacity after Huesca’s casket, draped with a Chicago flag, was carried inside.

Emiliano Huesca Jr., Luis Huesca’s older brother, remembered the slain officer as wise beyond his years, a well-rounded world traveler who took pride in caring for his mother and who “always put others first.”

“Luis, your nickname should be, ‘Lionheart,” Emiliano Huesca Jr. told mourners in attendance, reading from a letter he wrote to his brother. “You were an exceptional person with courage, bravery, humility and pride in your work. And you had dedication for those you touched. Rest in peace, my brother, and I love you.”

The 30-year-old Luis Huesca was shot and killed April 21 near his home in the Gage Park neighborhood on the Southwest Side, just two days before his 31st birthday. Huesca had just finished his patrol shift in the CPD’s Calumet District (5th) before he was shot. His car was also stolen.

“This is a day to celebrate the great contributions that this officer has provided this city. The protection of others is what he wanted every single day,” CPD Superintendent Larry Snelling told mourners. “Let’s remember the greatness of this young man, let’s remember the kindness of this young man, and let’s take something from that. Let’s take something from this family. Let’s continue to do the work that we do, and let’s continue to remember Officer Huesca.

Meanwhile, the investigation into Huesca’s killing remains active. On Friday, a Cook County judge signed an arrest warrant for a man wanted in connection with the shooting, though he was not in custody as of Monday.

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