Every year since 2011, hundreds of people have gathered on the grounds of the State Capitol on the last Sunday of September for a solemn ceremony to remember the Minnesota firefighters who have died in the line of duty.
Yesterday, MnFIRE representatives joined others in the fire service, dignitaries including Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, family members and the public once again as part of the 2024 Minnesota Fallen Firefighter Memorial Service.
MnFIRE board members Ken Bence and Ed Hoffman participated in the reading of the honor roll, and Hoffman also led the ceremonial releasing of the doves. MnFIRE board president George Esbensen spoke about the history of MnFIRE, and how the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program is charting a way forward to improve firefighter health.
“I began attending funerals for fallen firefighters and noticed a pattern: cancer, cardiac issues and emotional trauma were consistently primarily responsible for these losses,” Esbensen said in his remarks. “It struck me that what’s predictable is preventable. Could we apply successful fire prevention approaches to firefighter health and well-being?”
According to Esbensen, firefighters of all types across Minnesota are receiving help daily through the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program. Eighty percent of fire departments statewide have received free training on the physical and mental risks of firefighting and strategies for prevention and mitigation. A network of over 1,000 trauma-informed mental health providers has been created, aiming to have support within an hour’s drive of any firefighter or family member in Minnesota.
He also described the thriving peer support network and how every firefighter in the state is automatically enrolled in a critical illness program, providing up to $20,000 in life-changing funds when diagnosed with cancer, cardiac issues, emotional trauma or other qualifying conditions.
“By identifying and addressing the root causes of many of the illnesses and deaths in the Minnesota fire service, we can reduce preventable job-related tragedies among our selfless servants,” Esbensen said.
Since 1881, 249 Minnesota firefighters have died in the line of duty. Their names have been inscribed on columns throughout the nationally recognized memorial, located on the south side of the Capitol grounds. Columns were unveiled Sunday honoring Adam Finseth of the Burnsville Fire Department, who died February 18, 2024; Kayla Giefer of the Courtland Fire Department, who died July 13, 2023; Thomas McDonough, Jr., of the St. Paul Fire Department, who died Aug. 24, 2020; Lloyd Conley, Sr., of the MN State Fire Marshal’s Office, who died Nov. 2, 1921; and Arthur Clark, Sr., also of the MN State Fire Marshal’s Office, who died Aug. 29, 1913.
