hosted by the Professional Women of Millington
October 10, 1998
One of the great joys of serving in public office is the opportunity it affords me to give thanks to modern day heroes. Just last week, I was honored to salute the men and women of the United States Navy celebrating its 223 birthday during the Bureau of Naval Personnel’s grand opening. Tonight I get to thank you who are not only modern day heroes, but heroes every day.
When I was a child, my father was my hero. Somewhere between the time he flew Liberator bombers over occupied Europe and the days long after World War II when he drove a school bus in our hometown, he developed the habit of following fire trucks on their missions. I know that it is different today. Now there are laws against doing what my Dad did, but we needed people like him in those days.
On more than one occasion, I was his companion in the passenger seat of the family Volkswagen -- on some routine errand which turned into a great adventure when the fire truck appeared with lights and sirens wailing. From companion I turned into a captive obeying his instruction to stay in the car and watched as Dad disappeared on the back of a pumper into the smoke and flames, fearing what might happen.
Some time shortly after my Dad died, my mother told me that, when Dad was a boy, he stood and watched the horror of his best friend’s death in a house fire in the neighborhood where they lived. Then I had a deeper understanding of my father’s dedication.
I thought of that child’s death a quarter-century later serving as a lawyer in a lawsuit over how a house caught fire in Memphis. I met the modern day heroes who became my witnesses -- professional firefighters with names like Caraway and Pickett. A mother and all her children died in that inferno, and I had to deal with cold, hard evidence like photos of the victims.
Years before I got into public office, I volunteered to raise funds for the Firefighters’ Burn Center at The Med joining forces with firefighters from throughout the region to create the last best hope such victims have to survive the holocaust you defend each one of us against everyday. And just this week, we opened the Fire Museum of Memphis -- a dream you shared with me when I was Chairman of this County. You wanted not only a memorial to your fallen comrades and the great history of your profession, but a living classroom to teach children and their parents about fire prevention and safety. I am proud to have been able to help make your dream a reality and, in doing so, perhaps avoid the nightmare of one more loss to the fire that could have been prevented.
Thank you for what you and your families do. Thank you for protecting and risking your lives for us. Thank you for teaching and serving and sacrificing for all of us.
These days, when folks grow despondent over what events in our nation’s capitol portend to the future of this democracy, I say they need look no further than the men and women like you who serve us here at home each day to see that our future is strong and bright. Your are the unsung heroes of modern day America, and we are grateful.
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