Hundreds Honor Procession Carrying Fallen MD Firefighter Home

Aug. 15—At the first sign of blinking blue-and-red lights heading up Route 15 on Saturday, the scores of people gathered on Christophers Crossing bridge fell silent.

Many of them had been waiting more than an hour for this moment, standing just off the highway in the drizzling rain.

The sun came out in time for Battalion Chief Joshua Laird's body to pass underneath them.

Laird, 46, died Wednesday while battling a house fire in Ijamsville. He was a husband, a father and a 21-year veteran of the county's fire and rescue service whom his colleagues remember as a warm, funny and dedicated community servant.

But the vast majority of mourners stationed along Route 15 on Saturday never knew him. They came in droves to overpasses, parking lots and stretches of grass along the highway, waving American flags and saluting when Laird's procession passed them.

"He's a brother," said Shari Jenkins, her voice breaking with emotion. Though she didn't know Laird personally, her 40 years of fire and rescue experience left her with a feeling of kinship for others in the field. "I think anybody who's a part of fire and rescue will be out today, from one end of Frederick County to the other."

Saturday's ceremonial procession began at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Washington, D.C. From there, Laird's body was transported to Myers-Durboraw Funeral Home in Taneytown.

On the way, the line of fire and police vehicles made a detour to stop by Station 25 in Green Valley, where Laird had been stationed.

Amanda McGrew brought her young children along to wait for the procession on Christophers Crossing bridge. Her 5-year-old daughter, Erin, clutched a stuffed animal as she waited, hugging close to her mom.

"I was explaining to my children that this is a way to pay respect to someone who works to save and fight for the community," she said. "I'm trying to teach them that these are real-life heroes."

Frederick County hasn't lost a firefighter to an injury sustained in the line of duty in decades.

As the procession crawled slowly underneath the bridge, dozens of fire and rescue officials saluted from atop their engines.

"It's devastating to me, whether it's one person or a hundred people out here," said Natalie McCurry, a Frederick resident and retired police officer. "My heart goes out to each and every one of them. Hopefully they see that the public is behind them."

A public viewing for Laird is scheduled for 2-8 p.m. on Monday at Mount St. Mary's University's PNC Sports Complex, DFRS announced in a press release Saturday.

The funeral service will be in the same place on Tuesday at 1 p.m.

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