Fire Critic An Unadulterated View of the Fire Service
I am climbing again. This time at FDIC. I am registered to climb for Lt. Brian G. Ahearn (Engine 230). If you are going to be at FDIC, you should definitely climb…especially if you haven’t climbed yet. It is an amazing experience.
Lt. Ahearn, 43, was married with two children (5 & 9). He perished in Tower Two. Read more about Ahearn here.
Let’s be clear, there is nothing easy about climbing 110 floors. There is also no reason why we can’t get 343 climbers at FDIC, an event that boasts around 30,000 firefighters in attendance. This year, teams can register and do a relay of the event. If you aren’t sure you can complete it, do it in shorts and a t-shirt. There is nothing wrong with that. If you aren’t even willing to try, maybe you are in the wrong profession.
Go here to sign up: 9-11stairclimb.com
In the past, I have climbed for Firefighter Andrew A. Fredericks (squad 18), Firefighter Ruben D. Correa (engine 74), Martin McWilliams (engine 22), Firefighter Durrell V. Pearsall (rescue 4), Firefighter Frank J. Bonomo (engine 230), Firefighter Karl H. Joseph (engine 207), Raymond York (engine 285), and Firefighter Joseph Agnello (ladder 118). Read more about what I have written about the climbs in the past here.
Here is another climb going on in Springfield, MO on June 27th.
– The Fire Critic
Below is the press release on the event.
Chief Bobby Halton says the FDIC 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb is “about honor and service”
EMMITSBURG, MD – Show others that you will never forget the 343 members of FDNY who courageously gave their lives on September 11, 2001. Register now for the 3rd Annual FDIC 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb on Friday, April 26 at Lucas Oil Stadium and help raise money to assist the families and colleagues of the fallen heroes. Sign up now and help make sure there is a firefighter in Indianapolis climbing for every FDNY firefighter who died that day.
“Our goal is to make sure every one of those 343 firefighters is represented by someone climbing the stairwells of Lucas Oil Stadium,” said Chief Ron Siarnicki, executive director of the NFFF. “We want their families, friends and colleagues to know that each of them will be honored and remembered.”
The FDIC 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb is sponsored by the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and benefits the FDNY Counseling Unit. Check-in is between 12:00 and 1:00 p.m. at the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Booth #9448 in Lucas Oil Stadium and the climb will begin at 1:30 p.m. Participants will walk the stadium stairwells three times, representing the number of floors in the Twin Towers.
Participants can select the firefighter they want to honor when they register and their name will be displayed under the picture of the FDNY firefighter on the registration web site. Climbers will have the option to start in turn-out gear or wear their work uniforms or gym clothes. The cost is $25 per person. Teams of 3 can register, with each person completing one rotation. Participants will receive a photo and badge of one of the fallen heroes of September 11th as well as a shirt.
“The 9-11 stair climb at FDIC and elsewhere is about honor and service,” explained Chief Bobby Halton, editor-in-chief of Fire Engineering Magazine and education director of FDIC. “We will climb to honor their memories. Not only for what they did that infamous day, but for every day they served. We will climb as they all intended, but were unable. We honor their intentions and show our respect to our chosen hero whose photo we carry. “
For more information and to register, go to http://9-11stairclimb.com/FDIC/
