Firefighter
Eugene Whelan
Engine 230
Memorial Service was held
on September 27, 2001
Guilty
of Serial Hugging He was no saint!" said Eugene Whelan's mother,
Joan, her laughter bubbling up. "Yeah, he could be a giant pain!" her husband,
Alfred, added, chuckling about the ninth of their 10 children. But examples
eluded them. While Firefighter Whelan, 31, undoubtedly jettisoned saint eligibility
at some Rockaway pub or Grateful Dead concert — a captain called him "the
king of fun" — he was still terrific. He kept extra winter jackets in his
Jeep in case he spotted a shivering homeless person. He was a persistent
serial hugger, spreading those burly embraces known as "Eugene hugs." He
was a Mr. Fix-it and human Velcro to kids. In Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn,
the neighborhood served by Engine Company 230, children would arrive at the
firehouse with broken bicycles for Firefighter Whelan to make whole. During
a school visit, he asked why one child was left in the bus. The child was
paralyzed, a teacher replied. Mr. Whelan carried the child to the fire truck. "He
understood what life was really about," said his father, "so we feel pretty
good about him." (Legacy.com Article)
NY
Newsday Article
Firehouse.com Article