Memorial in Sacramento remembers firefighters who made ultimate sacrifice
SACRAMENTO - There's an effort underway to remember firefighters who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Their names have been forever added to the firefighter memorial in Sacramento. But who are they, how did they lose their life, and what impact did they have on their communities?
"I know many of the names on the wall and I served with seven of them," said retired Fire Chief Mel Enslow. "I am the father of one of them and that presents a deep, deep pain."
His son Kenneth died in the line of duty in 1990. You'll find his name and face on the California Firefighter's Memorial but not his story, one that started as a young boy.
"He loved his visits to the fire station and interacting with firefighters. He was always asking questions and curious about how everything worked," Enslow said.
"There are stories like that all over the California fire service. And that's what we want to collect," said Brian K Rice, the president of the California Professional Firefighters.
The California Professional Firefighters want loved ones of those on the wall to share stories about their life and service and what the memorial means to them. It's all part of the firefighter's memorial oral history project.
"This is going to be part of the history of that wall. It's going to be enduring, in not just telling the story of the wall," Rice said.
They've set up a 1-800 number people can call into and leave messages. Rice said the messages will help honor their legacy for generations to come. Some of them will be used for expansion efforts to help show the importance of the memorial.
"This memorial is a living memorial. There's never not going to be a year that we don't add firefighters names to this," Rice said.
And those stories will not only let people know about these heroes but hopefully help provide their families a little bit of comfort.
"Our family has been involved with the memorial since the time it's been introduced and we have felt a sense of healing as a result," Enslow said.
"You know we don't know what's historic unless we don't collect it and there are just so many stories out there," Rice said.
Anyone who wants to share stories of fallen firefighters across California can share them with the Firefighters Memorial Oral History Project by calling (916) 883-3580.
