By:KEITH GRANT
OK/GS
LBH Funeral 6/28
Front page:
photo 22222I
Firefighter Ford laid to rest
They came from every direction, walking silently toward Grand Boulevard. Without a prayer of even getting near St. Ignatius Martyr Church, they came anyway, filling the streets for blocks in every direction to pay their respects.
They came to say goodbye to Harry Ford.
The Long Beach man was the first of the three New York City firefighters who perished in the Father's Day blaze in Astoria to be laid to rest. The Thursday, June 21 service brought out nearly 10,000 mourners, mostly firefighting brethren from all across the country: Lake Mohegan, N.Y.; Nepeon, Ontario; Miami; Dallas, Nashville ... everywhere. They took trains from Baltimore, stopping in at the local VFW to refresh before the ride back home.
They came from Worcester, Mass., a department that knows such loss all too well. Just 18 months ago, they buried six of their own who fell in the line of duty.
With Grand Boulevard packed from Beech to the boardwalk, NYFD members welcomed their out-of-town brothers, as did dozens of neighborhood residents, many of whom lowered their front-yard flags to half-staff. Many firefighters had microphones pushed in front of them by reporters, who also could get nowhere near the church, throwing out the most asked question of the day: Why did you come?
"When one of your own falls, you have to come," answered one firefighter, who could've spoken for all. "Whether you knew him or not, you've got to. This is a brotherhood. This hits close to home for all of us."
Bobby Gleason, like Ford a Long Beach resident and New York City firefighter, echoed those thoughts.
"That's what the department is, it's a brotherhood. Even if you don't know the guy, you feel it."
Ford's friend and neighbor, retired fireman Bart Lang, said Ford's death in the Father's Day tragedy probably hit a lot of colleagues even harder than usual. A 27-year veteran and member of the elite Rescue 4, Ford was seen as somewhat indestructible.
"It makes us realize our own vulnerability," Lang said. "At any moment, it could be you. One guy said at the funeral, if Harry goes, this makes us all vulnerable."
Gleason, chief of the 37th Battalion in Brooklyn, added, "Harry was probably one of the most experienced guys we had. He was a tough guy. Like everyone said, you never thought he would get it."
Inside the church, speakers lauded Ford's toughness and bravery. Noting that the Virginia Avenue resident owned nine citations for bravery, New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said, "He was not only one of our bravest, he was one of our best."
With the mourners back in formation, Ford's casket was returned to the Rescue 4 vehicle that would carry it past the saluting masses along West Penn. Six helicopters flew overhead in a diamond formation, the lone sound heard until the bagpipers began again to lead the procession.
Each carrying one of their father's helmets, Harry Jr., 12, and Gerard, 10, joined sister Janna, 24, and mother Denise in a limousine for the ride to St. Charles Cemetery in East Farmingdale, where Ford would be buried.
Before the service had ended, Giuliani told the gathering, "When a firefighter falls in the line of duty, New York City stops."
For one morning, so did Long Beach.
