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![[ Yahoo!
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Map of All NYC Firehouses
We are a group of retired and active
New York City Firefighters, of all ranks, who reside mainly on Staten Island, New York, although our membership extends
outside the city.
Our goals are simple:
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To unite all of our members for their mutual protection
and welfare.
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To encourage Esprit-De-Corps.
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To take the steps necessary to accomplish the objectives
of the organization as mandated by the membership.
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To sponsor conferences, seminars, various social gatherings,
and outings for our membership.
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To utilize the wealth of fire safety knowledge possessed
by the membership to improve Fire Protection and safety for the community at large.
Meetings
are held at the BPO Elks Lodge, 3250 Richmond Avenue, Staten Island on the third Thursday of each month at 7:30
p.m. except during the months of July and August we do not meet. Our June meeting is held in conjunction with our
annual picnic, and the December meeting is held prior to our annual Christmas party.
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Thoughts of a Retired Firefighter
No, I haven't forgotten the excitement
of riding on a fire rig, "lights flashing, sirens wailing," nor the feeling of a "good save! Whether it be human life or valued
possessions of a fellow citizen.
I haven't forgotten the feeling of standing, ankle deep, in freezing water on a 5 below
January night, gloves frozen to the nozzle, fighting a fire I know was caused by carelessness or worse.
I haven't forgotten the terror of being
lost in a smoke filled building...feeling the taste of hot coffee and a cold meat loaf sandwich at four in the morning.
Now, I walk into my old firehouse,
only to find it filled with strangers. I may not walk as fast, or stand as straight as you. My hair may be gray or thin. My
jokes don't come as easy as they once did. But I know in my heart that I have paid the price, and have "earned" the right
to say proudly
"I'm a retired firefighter."
Ret. Battalion Chief Joe Carber(Deceased)
Fire Department City of New York
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A Poem by Lt. Robert Higgins.. F.D.N.Y.
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The Call of the Guardian
I rise
as a guardian of the night and see the light of the fire.
I race through the streets of the sleeping city toward a beckoning
fervent beast waiting In Malevolent flames.
I arrive and my heart is seized by the swiftness of the fury and the anguish.
The fire breaches the darkness with a light both savage and sublime, as fiery fingers reach and scratch at the blackening
sky.
I push out the borders of fear away with the voices of doubt.
With ladder and line and a fervid heart with purpose
and push, I force myself into a voracious red wind.
I dive forward into darkness beneath the erupting ash and give myself
to the infinite void; Into halls black with death and red with rage.
I reach with a desperate hand across the narrowing
divide between the dying and the dead and take from there what that red beast can never claim.
I carry my fallen brethren
into the awaiting arms of Hope.
I lay the lifeless ones down,... surrendering them to God and wonder of His Way..
I
stand upon the smoldering remnants of evil's effort both victor and vanquished, as the soot and the steam rise around me like
the vestiges of a breath long expelled.
I am weary of body and never far from death but life is my calling and I hearken
to its voice everywhere, never to leave unheard the cries of the daunted and the desperate.
I stand steely tall along
the sad blue line as those who gave with greater love pass highly by, below the echoes of melancholy strains.
I return
through the haze of a city dawn and ride through the days.
And tomorrow I will stand this watch, ever aware, ever vigilant,
waiting for a distant toll to call me.
O,I ride as a guardian of the night, toward the far away glow of my destiny, dauntless,
duty bound, endeavoring to a life fully-lived within the grasp of mortality.
And when my watch is over; when my tour is
ended and I am finally called home to the embrace of my gentle guardian, I will ride again.
Racing through the heavens,
oh so swiftly for I will ride there in glory with angels escort aboard a screaming red chariot of honor.
By Lt. Robert
Higgins - F.D.N.Y.
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