Posted 9/11/12 – A few years back, I heard that there was actually a 344th firefighter that died on 9/11/2001. As it was described to me, the media had contacted the International Association of Firefighters to find out how many NYFD personnel had died, and it was 343. That’s a fact. But the story, as I heard it, was that there had been a 344th firefighter that had died, who, as a volunteer at a different department, was not a member of NYFD, and therefore not a part of the IAFF. I don’t fault the IAFF for distributing their number, it was accurate. I’m not even sure I fault the media for not digging further, at the time. There was apparently a story published in the NY Times on Sept. 30, 2011. But it didn’t catch on. So let’s say it here and now in Sierra Madre, a town which honors its volunteers and reveres its volunteer firefighters – it was 344, not 343.
Now, eleven years later, the name Glenn Winuk should be a household name, because, as the 344th firefighter, he is overlooked every year, and the media should not allow that to happen. The information is out there. Thanks to Todd Conrad of SMFD, himself a volunteer firefighter for 31 years, who posted information about Glenn on his Facebook page yesterday. According to Todd, he visited a place in Arizona called the “Hall of Flame” which honors firefighters, and there was a whole section of the building dedicated to Glenn Winuk. Here is some more information on Glenn Winuk. http://www.legacy.com/Sept11/Story.aspx?PersonID=115453#.UE47FrAe7gg.facebook