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~Heroes are Men of Self Sacrifice~

I watched on television the funeral for Glenn Allen, Fireman, Father, Husband, Giver, and Hero on Friday, 2/25/11. It was such a moving and spiritual experience.

LOS ANGELES—A veteran firefighter killed by a falling ceiling as he battled a blaze at a Hollywood Hills mansion was mourned Friday by thousands of people and eulogized as a quiet man who did his duty to save others.

The funeral service for Glenn Allen, 61, was attended by Gov. Jerry Brown and firefighters from around the U.S. and Canada.

Allen was a "decent and determined man," Fire Chief Millage Peaks told the packed downtown Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. "He was always the first one in and the last one out."

Authorities determined the Feb. 16 blaze was not deliberately set.

However, homicide detectives have joined fire and building and safety officials to determine if any other crimes might have been committed, or if there were problems with the design or construction of the building, where the reality TV show "Germany's Next Top Model" had been set to film.

Allen, a firefighter-paramedic who had 36 years with the city department, was less than a year away from retirement when the ceiling collapsed. He died at a hospital two days later. Five other firefighters were injured.

Fire officials have said flames at the 12,500-square-foot home burned through a plastic sprinkler pipe in the attic and filled the space with water until it brought down the ceiling.

On Friday, Allen's fire engine No. 97 carried his flag-draped coffin from City Hall to the Roman Catholic Cathedral. It was accompanied by an honor guard, a troop
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of bagpipers and thousands of police, firefighters and other members of public safety agencies.

The engine passed under a huge flag suspended from crossed fire truck ladders.

During the service, the fire chief, friends and relatives remembered Allen as a man with a number of skills who had carved Christmas ornaments for members of his crew, was getting a pilot's license, and proudly cooked up chili for his firehouse colleagues.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said the city grieved for the "fallen guardian."

Allen, like his father, "dedicated his life to the most selfless public service there is: saving other people who find themselves in harm's way," the mayor said.

Allen could have retired years ago, "but he chose to keep doing what he loved to do," Villaraigosa said.

Allen was the first Los Angeles Fire Department firefighter to be killed in the line of duty since March 2008, when Brent Lovrien was killed in an explosion near Los Angeles International Airport as he investigated an earlier blast that blew manhole covers into the air.

Allen is survived by his wife, Melanie; his daughter, Rebecca McPhee, who gave birth to his first grandson a day after Allen's death; mother, Alberta Holtze, a brother, Bruce Allen, and a sister, Deborah Adams.

Stock Used:

Thanking you in advance here for any s you may grant as I do truly appreciate them.

©2011 Creativemikey and respective artists. Please do not copy or reproduce my images without my permission.

Description
~Heroes are Men of Self Sacrifice~

I watched on television the funeral for Glenn Allen, Fireman, Father, Husband, Giver, and Hero on Friday, 2/25/11. It was such a moving and spiritual experience.

LOS ANGELES—A veteran firefighter killed by a falling ceiling as he battled a blaze at a Hollywood Hills mansion was mourned Friday by thousands of people and eulogized as a quiet man who did his duty to save others.

The funeral service for Glenn Allen, 61, was attended by Gov. Jerry Brown and firefighters from around the U.S. and Canada.

Allen was a "decent and determined man," Fire Chief Millage Peaks told the packed downtown Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. "He was always the first one in and the last one out."

Authorities determined the Feb. 16 blaze was not deliberately set.

However, homicide detectives have joined fire and building and safety officials to determine if any other crimes might have been committed, or if there were problems with the design or construction of the building, where the reality TV show "Germany's Next Top Model" had been set to film.

Allen, a firefighter-paramedic who had 36 years with the city department, was less than a year away from retirement when the ceiling collapsed. He died at a hospital two days later. Five other firefighters were injured.

Fire officials have said flames at the 12,500-square-foot home burned through a plastic sprinkler pipe in the attic and filled the space with water until it brought down the ceiling.

On Friday, Allen's fire engine No. 97 carried his flag-draped coffin from City Hall to the Roman Catholic Cathedral. It was accompanied by an honor guard, a troop
Advertisement
of bagpipers and thousands of police, firefighters and other members of public safety agencies.

The engine passed under a huge flag suspended from crossed fire truck ladders.

During the service, the fire chief, friends and relatives remembered Allen as a man with a number of skills who had carved Christmas ornaments for members of his crew, was getting a pilot's license, and proudly cooked up chili for his firehouse colleagues.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said the city grieved for the "fallen guardian."

Allen, like his father, "dedicated his life to the most selfless public service there is: saving other people who find themselves in harm's way," the mayor said.

Allen could have retired years ago, "but he chose to keep doing what he loved to do," Villaraigosa said.

Allen was the first Los Angeles Fire Department firefighter to be killed in the line of duty since March 2008, when Brent Lovrien was killed in an explosion near Los Angeles International Airport as he investigated an earlier blast that blew manhole covers into the air.

Allen is survived by his wife, Melanie; his daughter, Rebecca McPhee, who gave birth to his first grandson a day after Allen's death; mother, Alberta Holtze, a brother, Bruce Allen, and a sister, Deborah Adams.

Stock Used:

Thanking you in advance here for any s you may grant as I do truly appreciate them.

©2011 Creativemikey and respective artists. Please do not copy or reproduce my images without my permission.