Big Apple firefighters visit Lemay brothers
Brian Hoener
Of the Suburban Journals
05/07/2003
A trio of New York City firefighters last week came into St. Louis to meet
the firefighters who raised money to help the family of a New York City
firefighter who was killed in the 9-11 tragedy.
More than $25,000 was raised in December 2001 by Lemay firefighters for the
wife and 10 children of Frank Palombo, a Brooklyn firefighter who died in
the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.
The firefighters from Ladder Company 105 in Brooklyn expressed their
gratitude for the help, said Lemay firefighter and public information
officer Ron Harder.
"They kind of adopted Lemay as their brother fire department," Harder said.
Lemay fire chief Neil Svetanics spent some time with the firefighters and he
said they appeared to enjoy themselves.
"I think they were really impressed with their stay here and showed a lot of
appreciation for the department's gesture a few years ago," Svetanics said.
On Thursday night, the trio attended the St. Louis Cardinals game with the
New York Mets. The firefighters were allowed on the field before the game to
meet some of the players. The trio also visited the St. Louis Arch and
received a private tour of the Anheuser-Busch brewery.
Lemay firefighters held a barbecue Friday for their Big Apple brothers at
the district's firehouse. Firefighters talked about fire service in the two
cities during the barbecue, Svetanics said.
"Firefighters are the same all over the country," Svetanics said. "They all
have a camaraderie that only they can understand."
Brian Hoener can be reached by email at bhoener@yourjournal.com.