LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — After losing her husband in July, months of heartache led Christina Parks to the State Capitol on Monday.
"I'm excited to be here and see everybody's hard work come full circle," Christina said. "It's bittersweet, I love that it's happening, but I hate why it's happening."
That heartache started last summer, after her husband, Vincent, a Jonesboro Police Officer, left for training at a State Police training complex.
Sweltering heat and constant movement put a strain on everyone— especially Vincent.
In a video we obtained from Arkansas State Police through a Freedom of Information Act request, Vincent was seen collapsing, and eventually, he was treated by paramedics.
Though Vincent would unfortunately not return home from that training.
While the heartache of losing her husband hasn't been easy to move through, it's given Christina something to push for. It led her right to the Governor's door.
House Bill 1458 would require instructors to know and recognize certain health conditions.
It's also known as the Vincent Parks Law, and on Monday it earned the governor's signature.
"It means everything to me," Christina said. "It's a bittersweet day, I'm glad it's happening, everybody's hard work has come full circle."
Joined by bill sponsors and Jonesboro Police Chief Rick Elliott, it was a bittersweet day for all.
"Glad to see something like this take place," Chief Elliott said. "They lost a brother, a brother in blue, and it shouldn't have happened."
His anger and frustration have turned into a lifelong support for Christina and her family.
"She's part of our family, and we'll treat her just as that," he said.
Thanks to an emergency clause, that bill is immediately law. For Chief Elliott, that couldn't have come soon enough.
"I think moving forward, all of our academies across the state will have this in mind," Elliott said. "Of course, with the new law, that this will never happen again."
Though it has been hard for Christina to find the words that sum up how she's feeling, what has been easy to see, though, is the changes that this will bring.
"It's hard on the family, it's hard to be down here and as you said, it's bittersweet," State Senator Dan Sullivan, (R-Jonesboro), said. "But it is important that when opportunities like this arise, for us to step up, take responsibility, and make the needed changes."