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Farewell, brother
Firefighters say goodbye to a beloved chief
BY BRETT LOVELACE, Intelligencer Journal Staff
Thompson McConnell played "Amazing Grace" on the bagpipes Friday as
Neffsville firefighters escorted the casket containing the body of
their former chief.
Sunlight reflected off the chrome of a 1936 fire truck outside
Highland Presbyterian Church on Oregon Pike as the firefighters loaded
the casket onto the truck bed.
The men, dressed in pressed suits and white hats, dabbed tears with handkerchiefs as they let go of the casket handles.
It was the last time Michael David Hearn would ride in a fire truck.
Hearn, 46, was a Neffsville Fire Company member since 1975. He served two terms as chief totaling 12 years.
The married father of a son and daughter died Monday at Essa Flory Hospice Center after being diagnosed with cancer last year.
Kevin Thomas, a close friend of Hearn's, gave the eulogy Friday before approximately 500 people.
"Mike had the ability to think clearly and lead by example," Thomas
said. "The community you live in is a safer place because of Mike.
"Let thoughts of Mike stir you to action."
The church was filled with firefighters and police officers from across Pennsylvania.
The Rev. Lawrence R. Chottiner described Hearn as the ultimate
public servant who dedicated his life to family and Neffsville Fire
Company.
"The same calm he used to lead the fire department was used to face the last season of his life," Chottiner said.
Hearn worked 32 years for Sir Speedy Printing in Lancaster. He
joined the fire company in 1975, graduated from Manheim Township High
School in 1977 and was named chief for the first of two terms in 1985.
The volunteer woke up countless times in the middle of the night to
battle fires. He helped increase fire company membership and headed the
1998 fire station expansion from 9,216 square feet to 15,858 square
feet.
The department named Hearn its chief emeritus Saturday.
Chottiner recalled talking with Hearn several years ago in the middle of the night on the reverend's front lawn.
Homes in Chottiner's neighborhood had lost electricity after a transformer caught fire. Hearn was there to put out the fire.
"I saw a person that night who was totally immersed in the work he was doing," Chottiner said. "Yes, we will miss him."
The hourlong service ended with the mourners singing "Amazing Grace."
Two firefighters rode on the back of the fire truck carrying the
casket. The truck was adorned with flowers and firefighter helmets. A
blue canvas covered the casket.
The caravan of fire trucks stretched a mile.
The procession left the church in Manheim Township for Greenwood Cemetery in Lancaster city shortly before 2 p.m.
Members of Neffsville and Lititz fire companies extended the ladders
on their trucks to create an arch for the passing vehicles. An American
flag hung between the ladders.
Police halted traffic as the caravan headed south on Oregon Pike before crossing onto Lititz Pike and into Lancaster city.
The caravan rolled south on Prince Street before crossing into the cemetery entrance on South Queen Street.
Chottiner's words lingered as the caravan arrived at the cemetery.
"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
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