Honoring firefighters who have made the ultimate sacrifice

oming from a long line of firefighters, Fire Rescue, Battalion Chief, Ronnie Russell says, My family goes way back in public service. His great grandfather Boyd Burris and his great grandfathers brother Bert Burris went to work for the Dallas Fire Department around 1917. Rising through the ranks, they both became Captains within a couple years. Burt ended up dying in the line of duty in 1923 while on a call at a threestory wheel factory near the Dallas Fairgrounds. A brick wall collapsed and fell on him and he died a few days later at the hospital. I never knew either one of them, but my family and friends who knew them told me they were extremely tough men, Russell says. Spending a lot of time around the Dallas fire houses as a boy, while his dad was working, Russell replies when asked if he knew he would become a fire fighter someday, I spent day and night at the fire houses. It was exciting to listen to the alarm go o and then watch the men roll out of bed and speedily pull up their gear and hurry through the door into the apparatus room. Then they would fire up the engine and pull out of the bay with the ol Q2 siren whirring. After learning the protocol (at 10 years old), Russell says the station captain gave him the responsibility of writing the box alarms and tap outs for the daily station log record. Most of the time, when I was not driving a tractor or a combine with my family and friends, I was trying to persuade
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my mother to take me to the fire station where my dad was working. This was before I could drive, he adds. Other Russell family members in fire or police service include his brother Terry Russell, and his father James Donald (Snake) Russell, who made the very first ambulance call for the Dallas Fire department. He worked up until he passed away in 1997 at the age of 57. He had lung cancer, a very common disease among firefighters, Russell says. I sent out a teletype to tell all the firefighters in the Dallas Fire Department, that he was getting critical and not expected to live much longer. [My] Uncle Denny told us that while my dad Snake was battling this disease, firefighters were standing in line wanting to sub for him. He told us that out of 70 firefighters that were on a list to work for him, two called and oered cash to move up the line to work in his place. We were so humbled by this, even to this day. Russells grandfather, Homer Burris, was a police ocer in the Dallas Police department retiring in 1972 after 22 years on the force. His uncle Denny Roy Burris was the first Chaplain for the Dallas Fire Department and recently retired after 32 years of service, Unocially he still is doing the job to this day, Russell adds. Russell began as a volunteer firefighter while in high school, and has been a full-time firefighter/EMT for 32 years and Battalion Chief for the last 12 years.

BOYD BURRIS

BURT BURRIS

JAMES DONALD (SNAKE) RUSSELL