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Firefighter Mike Urban’s Helmet Has Been Returned

Jan 232011

I hate reporting bad news. It’s not fun. There’s so much bad news in the world on a daily, minute-to-minute basis. But this morning I have good news.

Firefighter Mike Urban’s helmet has been returned to his widow.

I hadn’t yet pulled up any news page to see if there was any further news on the story. Instead, someone who works at the local news station in Framingham took time to comment on my post and let me know that it had been returned. Turns out that he’s also a firefighter. I told you that there is a family in the fire service; we all care for one another.

I read the article and, of course, got a little weepy.

Her husband’s helmet had protected him – at least from physical objects – and “Now, hopefully, it will protect me the rest of my life,” Urban told the cameras. “I can’t hold him anymore, but I can hold onto the helmet.”

I said much the same on Friday. My heart is so relieved that she now has his helmet. The article went on to talk about the Fire Chief, Lance Benjamino, used the return of the helmet to teach his son that some things in life are priceless. And it’s true.

I find it incredibly interesting that the award money wasn’t used. An “anonymous tipster” called in to say that it was behind the station in a backpack (that was also stolen with the helmet) on Friday evening. The fact that the money wasn’t used makes me wonder. Did the thief return the helmet, feeling guilty after all the news coverage? Did the thief’s significant other or mom or grandpa do it? Or was it someone else entirely that tracked it down? It’s interesting. Interest aside, I’m just glad it is home.

I hope that Maureen Urban and her daughters — now in their 20′s — can begin to work through their grief and healing and the messy art of losing someone you love so dearly. It touched me when the article mentioned that Urban’s daughters used to pose in his helmet when they came to the fire station.

I think we all have a few (or more) photos like those in our albums.

Do This if You Want to Be Haunted by Firefighters

fire life 8 Responses »

Jan 212011

Fire spouses live with the realization that their partner-in-life can die. Well, we all realize that, I suppose, though the vast majority of us — fire families included — don’t care to think of it on a daily basis. There are very few things that I can imagine are worse than losing my firefighter, and they are all horrific thoughts that involve losing my children in some form or fashion. But let’s not go there today.

Recently, Mike Urban, a firefighter in Framingham, MA, lost a lengthy battle with mesothelioma. Viewing the photos of his ceremony, complete with firefighters in their dress uniforms and his casket on the fire truck, my heart simply breaks for the wife and family he left behind. As if it’s not bad enough to suddenly become a widow, it turns out that someone stole the firefighter’s helmet after the funeral.

Let that sink in for a minute. Someone stole the firefighter’s helmet after the funeral.

A firefighter’s helmet is a sacred thing. It keeps them safe. For those of us in the fire service, it is a symbol of protection and honor. And, after the death of a firefighter it is, most often, given to the widow(er) or the next of kin as a “memento,” very similar to the way that surviving spouses or family members are offered a flag after a soldier dies. It is one of those treasured “last things” that we as fire family members get from our firefighter.

And for one wife, it’s now missing.

I read the article and I would venture to guess that whomever stole the helmet probably didn’t realize what he/she was taking off with while robbing someone blind. They probably thought, “Cool! A laptop and a fire helmet!” But the truth is that now, as the news has hit the Internet, the blogosphere and local news stations in that area, that thief has to realize that it’s not cool. It’s not okay. While it’s never acceptable to steal things, stealing a deceased firefighter’s helmet is akin to stealing an urn.

I am hoping against hope that the thief will realize what the helmet means and will decide to simply leave it at the fire department. Quite honestly, I’d love if the person was caught and forced to hand it to the widow before being carried off to jail. But, at this point, I think the importance should be placed on the return of the helmet.

A reward of $1000 has been offered for the return of the helmet. Hopefully someone close to the thief realizes the meaning of that helmet and turns in the guilty party. Or, at the very least, hopefully someone close to the thief needs a thousand bucks.

[This photo is an oldie but a goodie. And that's the helmet I want for the reasons shown by this photo and so many more.]

A commenter on the article who is quite obviously not in the fire service asked if the widow just can’t be given another helmet until the original is returned. That’s like asking if you would like to have someone else’s ashes in the urn. It’s not the same thing. It’s not right. If my firefighter dies before I do, I want his helmet on our wall, not one of his fellow firefighters. I want the smell of him mixed with fire and a random stray hair of his. I want the helmet that kept him safe. I want a piece of him with me.

And Mike Urban’s wife deserves the same. I hope she gets it.

[Update: Firefighter Mike Urban's helmet has been returned!]