SAN ANTONIO - From the heart of downtown, north toward the hills, the funeral procession honoring fallen firefighter Scott Deem was a chance for thousands of mourners to stop and honor a fallen son.
At the Alamo, they came to remember.
Under a Texas flag, John 15:13 adorned the front of a fire truck that helped lead the procession.
The Bible verse quoted is “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
Meanwhile, at the Alamodome, like a river of grief, more than 150 fire apparatus from across the state and nation flowed north. It was a convoy of big red trucks whose drivers belong to a brotherhood with broken hearts.
On overpasses all along the route, ordinary folks stopped and saluted a hero who lived and died a life of service.
As the flag draped casket on an antique firetruck traversed the Olmos Basin, oncoming traffic slowed to a halt as a show of respect. And near the airport, on a flyway over the procession, people got out of their cars to say goodbye.
On bridges, huge American flags suspended from ladder trucks waved goodbye, held aloft by unseen breezes and the prayers of an entire community.
At Community Bible Church, the ranks of the mourners grew to be several thousand strong, united in pride.
While drums tapped out a cadence of sorrow and bagpipes wailed a sad goodbye, Deem was remembered as a community resource of the highest value.
At Public Safety Headquarters, those who could not attend the funeral said goodbye with patches, pictures, and emotion.
One sign read "You never really leave a place. Part of it, you take with you. Part you leave behind.”
As the ceremonies were drawing to a close, the San Antonio Fire Department dispatcher sounded an emergency tone as a final alarm for Deem and said “It is with great sadness that the San Antonio Fire Department marks the passing of active duty firefighter Scott Patrick Deem, badge number 3239. Scott was assigned to Ladder 35 on the A Shift and faithfully served the City of San Antonio for six years. Scott died heroically on May 18th, 2017.
Although you are gone...you will never be forgotten.”