Two funerals in two days for firefighters

ST. LOUIS -- In some ways, loved ones described Rob Morrison like any other man. He had a weakness for golf. He could sometimes be a know-it-all. He might talk too much after a few beers with the boys.

But all of those who remembered Morrison at his funeral Wednesday also emphasized something else. It was something that helped explain the elaborate ceremony, the hundreds who attended, and the lack of dry eyes at Holy Cross Lutheran Church: Rob Morrison was a hero.

He and fellow firefighter Derek Martin died from injuries suffered Friday night in a south city fire, reportedly trying to save a colleague.

Two to be honored

Martin's procession and funeral were scheduled for today, and a citywide ceremony to honor both was scheduled for Saturday morning downtown.

On Wednesday, the slow, eight-block procession to Holy Cross included 12 vehicles followed by hundreds of firefighters marching in formal officer garb. Two dozen fire engines lined both sides of Jefferson Street, raising their ladders overhead to form an archway. Two of the arches held giant American flags that flew on either end.

Three F-15 fighter jets flew overhead. Along the route, someone yelled out "God bless you" to the firefighters, who filled a city block. They saluted almost simultaneously when Morrison's casket was lowered from an old-fashioned engine and carried into the church, bagpipe-blown "Amazing Grace" fading to the choral hymnals inside.

For part of the two-hour service, the Rev. Gerald Kovac addressed the firefighters: "It reminds us that you are very special gifts to us, and very special gifts to this community and communities across the nation. ... I'm afraid to admit that until disaster strikes, you are taken for granted."

Morrison has been known publicly as a hero since Friday night. Family members described how they have known him personally as a hero for much longer.

"I knew him for 35 years, and I always looked up to him," said his younger brother, James Morrison, choking back tears. "Robbie's job by its nature can be dangerous. But we don't think about that. I never thought that something could happen to Robbie."

Stepfather Robert Warren described a man who had long shown compassion for others, starting as a child and leading to his decision to fight fires.

"The choices Rob made, the decisions he undertook, shaped who he was, who he became," Warren said. "And those decisions of life shaped his death. You could not have any more kept Rob out of that building than you could have tied a bulldozer to him."