E40FDNYL35
08-13-2003, 04:31 PM
Now if I heard right FDNYRR son was in this class. All I no is that there will be no more over time for awhile........
There's a bunch of new Bravest.
The Fire Department graduated its largest class ever yesterday, as 346 probationary firefighters were welcomed into a department staggering from retirements and the 9/11 terror attack.
Mayor Bloomberg joined more than 1,000 people at Brooklyn College to cheer on the probies - who outnumber even the complement of firefighters who launched the FDNY in 1865.
"We can never replace those we lost," Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta told the probies. "The next best thing is to recruit and train another generation, and you are very much a part of that generation."
The 343 members of the FDNY killed in the attack on the World Trade Center had 4,400 years of combined experience, Scoppetta noted. The department also has lost years of experience through a wave of retirements.
"I'm sure I'm looking out here at a number of future chiefs," Chief of Department Frank Crothers told the crowd of white-gloved graduates.
Trained at new center
The graduating class is the first to train at the city's new $45 million center on Randalls Island. Its members include five firefighters who lost relatives in the World Trade Center, and others from firefighting families.
"It's following a legacy," said Probationary Firefighter Matthew Regis, 31, whose FDNY roots go back three generations. "It's a lot to uphold."
Probationary Firefighter Craig Thomas, 31, said he was inspired to join after the terror attack. The son of a retired firefighter, Thomas once worked as a stock trader at the World Trade Center.
"It seemed pretty stupid to move piles of money around," he said. "I wanted to do something more with my life."
Originally published on August 13, 2003
There's a bunch of new Bravest.
The Fire Department graduated its largest class ever yesterday, as 346 probationary firefighters were welcomed into a department staggering from retirements and the 9/11 terror attack.
Mayor Bloomberg joined more than 1,000 people at Brooklyn College to cheer on the probies - who outnumber even the complement of firefighters who launched the FDNY in 1865.
"We can never replace those we lost," Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta told the probies. "The next best thing is to recruit and train another generation, and you are very much a part of that generation."
The 343 members of the FDNY killed in the attack on the World Trade Center had 4,400 years of combined experience, Scoppetta noted. The department also has lost years of experience through a wave of retirements.
"I'm sure I'm looking out here at a number of future chiefs," Chief of Department Frank Crothers told the crowd of white-gloved graduates.
Trained at new center
The graduating class is the first to train at the city's new $45 million center on Randalls Island. Its members include five firefighters who lost relatives in the World Trade Center, and others from firefighting families.
"It's following a legacy," said Probationary Firefighter Matthew Regis, 31, whose FDNY roots go back three generations. "It's a lot to uphold."
Probationary Firefighter Craig Thomas, 31, said he was inspired to join after the terror attack. The son of a retired firefighter, Thomas once worked as a stock trader at the World Trade Center.
"It seemed pretty stupid to move piles of money around," he said. "I wanted to do something more with my life."
Originally published on August 13, 2003