The late Fishers Fire Chief Andy Stromfeld created a memorial so that people would never forget the tragedy and the heroism of first responders who were called to the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001, and who continued their rescue and recovery efforts in the days, weeks and months in the aftermath of the terrorist attack.
With this memorial in danger of losing a home at its home base, his fellow firefighters wanted to ensure that Stromfeld and his memorial are never forgotten.
That’s when the Canandaigua Fire Department stepped in.
Stromfeld joined the Fishers Fire Department in the hamlet of Victor from New York City, two years after he was among those who responded to and helped in evacuation and recovery efforts at Ground Zero. He started his role as chief in 2012 until retiring in 2018. That’s the short biography of Stromfeld, who was 60 when he died in 2021 from cancer linked to his service at Ground Zero.
The short afterword to his story is one those who served with him hope has a lasting impact.
About the Fishers 9-11 memorial now in Canandaigua
Stromfeld, acting on a desire to create a memorial, soon got to work after his arrival.
Extensive with many pieces, the 9-11 memorial includes several striking photos of Ground Zero, some of which were taken by Stromfeld. A 6-foot steel I-beam secured from the World Trade Center stands front and center. Pieces of rubble collected from the scene lie at the memorial’s base.
Across the top reads the inscription, “All Gave Some, Some Gave All,” referring in part to the members of “FDNY, NYPD and PAPD” who gave their lives in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and whose “heroic actions saved thousands of lives.”
A folded up American flag and a photo of Stromfeld have now been placed beside the memorial.
The memorial, which was dedicated in 2011 by members of the Fishers Fire Department, needed a home after the more than 100-year-old Fishers Fire District where Stromfeld and many others served their community was dissolved last October.
The Canandaigua Fire Department took in the memorial, and as of a week, it’s now housed at its Station 1 firehouse on South Main Street.
David Sorrells, who was a Fishers firefighter but now works in Brighton, said all of those who served with Stromfeld knew how much this memorial meant to him.
“It meant something to us,” Sorrells said.
The memorial is now in a perfect place, said Peter Marasco, who was a volunteer at Fishers, during an awards and recognition ceremony April 23.
“We know it will be honored and Andy honored,” Marasco said.
More about the late Fishers fire chief
Many believe Stromfeld also should never be forgotten.
Marasco remembered when Stromfeld arrived from the big city to this tiny-by-comparison hamlet.
“We knew right away he had a lot of knowledge,” Marasco remarked during the ceremony, adding that Stromfeld freely shared his knowledge, and firefighters learned a lot from him. “It truly was an honor to work with Andy.”
Sorrells said he owes his firefighting career to Stromfeld, who has made an impression on those who never knew him, like Canandaigua Firefighter Adam Palumbo.
“From what everyone here says and what I read about him, he’s just a saint in our business,” Palumbo said.
Several Canandaigua firefighters learned the business from Stromfeld at the Fishers department. Canandaigua Firefighter and Union President Jacob Bement said they will never let 9-11 be forgotten.
“We won’t let you down, chief,” Bement said.
Fishers and Canandaigua work together
Like at the scene of a fire or emergency, firefighters from Fishers and Canandaigua worked together to get the job of moving the memorial from Fishers to Canandaigua right, and they did so quickly, setting it up inside the fire station with lights to draw even more attention to it.
Palumbo said the work put in by Fishers and Canandaigua firefighters to ready the memorial for the ceremony is an example of the sacrifice and loyalty exhibited by firefighters. The memorial is great to have in its new home in Canandaigua.
“You just don’t want to stop looking at it,” Palumbo said.
Mike Murphy covers Canandaigua and other communities in Ontario County and writes the Eat, Drink and Be Murphy food and drink column. He can be reached at mmurphy@messengerpostmedia.com. Follow him on X at @MPN_MikeMurphy.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Late chief’s 9/11 memorial finds new home
Reporting by Mike Murphy, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
