Pocono News Section

Fallen Firefighter Laid to Rest

Fallen Firefighter Laid to Rest - Wednesday, June 24, 2009 at 5:05PM EST

Reported by: Eric Deabill
Wednesday, Jun 24, 2009 @ 05:05pm EST
DUSHORE, SULLIVAN COUNTY - A long-time volunteer firefighter who served the Northern Tier was laid to rest Wednesday morning after being killed in the line of duty.

Bill Thompson, 66, was a long-time veteran of both the Dushore and New Albany fire companies. He died last Thursday morning. His fellow firefighters say Thompson had a heart attack after returning home from an emergency call.

Thompson's impact was easy to see as family, friends and fellow firefighters came out for his memorial service.

"He was just a wonderful guy, I mean, he'd do anything, take the shirt right off his back for you, if he could," family friend Francis Zurn said.

Friends say besides being a local volunteer, he was also a past fire chief from a department in Bucks County.

"He was a dedicated fireman but the limelight he didn't much care for," family friend Jim Collins said.

Fire departments from all over Sullivan and Bradford Counties honored Thompson on his final journey. He was laid to rest in New Albany. His casket passed under a huge American flag as his firefighting brothers proceeded behind.

"He truely, truely deserves every ounce of it. He's just someone who was one-of-a-kind," family friend Kathy Chase said.

Chase worked closely with Thompson for years. She says he was dedicated, devoted and down-to-earth.

"He was a real down-to-earth, simple guy, with an extreme amount of knowledge," Chase said.

"The replacements for people like that jsut aren't there because you can't pick up that experience," Dushore Fire Chief Scott Hope said.

Thompson leaves behind a wife and six children.