HIM. FIRE TRUCKS AND EMERGENCY VEHICLES ARE HERE FROM ACROSS THE STATE NOW. GARY TO COOK SERVED ON A DEPARTMENT THAT HAD JUST 16 MEMBERS. BUT CLEARLY HIS IMPACT WENT WELL BEYOND THAT. ON A DIRT ROAD SPLITTING FIELDS OF CORN AND BEANS, THE SOLEMN PROCESSION ROLLED TO GARY DE COOK’S FINAL RESTING PLACE JUST OUTSIDE NEW SHERIDAN. THE NORMALLY TRANQUIL ROAD WAS TRANSFORMED BY A SEEMINGLY ENDLESS LINE OF EMERGENCY VEHICLES PICKING UP DUST ON THEIR WAY TO HONOR A BELOVED FIREFIGHTER AND COMMUNITY MEMBER. YOU’RE NOT JUST A FIREMAN, YOUR BROTHER. IT’S A BROTHERHOOD. THEY FIND OUT ONE OF US PASSES. WE ALL GET TOGETHER AND CELEBRATE LIFE. DE KOCK HAD SPENT LAST SATURDAY ON A WORK DAY AT THE FIRE STATION IN BARN CITY. SHORTLY AFTER HE LEFT, HE HAD A MEDICAL EMERGENCY AND MEMBERS OF HIS OWN DEPARTMENT WENT OUT ON THE CALL. MANY MORE DEPARTMENTS RESPONDED TO THE CALL THURSDAY TO HONOR HIS LIFE. EVERY FIRE DEPARTMENT WITHIN, I WOULD SAY, A COUPLE OF COUNTY HAD REPRESENTATION HERE AND THAT WAS JUST AN HONOR TOWARD GARY AS WELL. JUST TO SHOW HOW HOW WELL-RESPECTED AND WELL-LOVED HE WAS. TO COOK TOOK SPECIAL PRIDE IN A FORMER ARMY TRUCK. HE HELPED TURN INTO A FIRE TRUCK FOR HIS DEPARTMENT. THAT PROJECT WAS NEAR THE FRONT OF THE PROCESSION, WHICH WAS SIGNIFICANT BECAUSE IT HAD BEEN OUT OF SERVICE. GET IT RUNNING TODAY IS A REAL BIG THING FOR US BECAUSE IT NEEDED A LITTLE BIT OF WORK, BUT WE OVERNIGHTED SOME STUFF HERE AND GOT IT. HIS FELLOW FIREFIGHTERS WERE WITH HIM IN DEATH, AS IN LIFE, AND THEY WERE PROUD. THE TRUCK KNOWN AS THE DEUCE, BUT A COMPANY DIDN’T KNOW ONE LAST TIME. HE’S SMILING DOWN ON US RIGHT NOW IN NEW SHARON ANDREW MOLLENBECK KCC