I was moved to tears when I watched Fire Commissioner James Joyce describe the tragic death of Scott Gillen, the firefighter who was killed in the line of duty by a drunken driver. This heroic firefighter should not have died the way he did, and the man whose car allegedly killed him should not have been on the road, with all the reported citations against him.
How many of us take for granted the services of our fire department? They are there for us 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Not only do they put their lives on the line for us when fighting fires, but they save lives with their paramedic skills as well. When our firefighters go to work each day, they face danger, disaster and death, not something most of us even think about let alone encounter in our jobs.
Every time I hear a firetruck go by, I say a prayer for the firefighters. After this tragic death, I will be able to put a name and a face to one brave firefighter, Scott Gillen. He will not be forgotten. We thank him and pray for his family, who will have to live with the memory and pride of how he bravely lived and needlessly died.
