Posted on September 16, 2024
Larry Miller always dreamt of becoming a fireman. His father was one and he started taking his son to the Delta-Cardiff Fire Company on Main Street in Delta, PA when Larry was a young boy. He recalls loving the sound of the fire sirens and would often run a mile to the station on his own or ride his bike there whenever he heard the familiar sound.
When he turned 16, Larry was invited to start training as a volunteer fireman and was only too happy to learn how to climb a ladder, slide down the firehouse pole and receive all the training he would need to safely and efficiently handle a fire scene.
The classes also trained him to work with traffic police to enforce traffic laws and manage traffic with the ultimate responsibility for preventing injury and loss of life on the roads.
Understandably, Larry’s mother was concerned about her son’s safety and initially did not want him to volunteer. In fact, she tore up his certification card when his training was completed to underscore her true feelings. But her love for her son and his passion for the job eventually led to a change of heart. He proudly tells the story of how it was his mother who gave him his very first fire monitor.
Larry is now 75 years old and struggles with bad knees. Last year the Fire Company awarded him his retirement badge and his Direct Support Professional (DSP), Minnie Morris, remembers how he struggled emotionally during the awards banquet knowing that the job he loved so much was sadly coming to an end.
Larry always worried about his father’s safety but learned from him that “if you’re afraid of the fire you don’t go into the building.” For many years he took refresher classes to hone his skills and at age 24 he traded in his yellow fireman’s hat for a black one that signified he was qualified to enter a burning building.
One incident he’ll never forget was when at just 24 years old, he instinctively ran into a burning building without wearing all of the required gear to save a baby on the second floor. He was suspended for that action but couldn’t restrain himself when he heard the cries of the baby’s mother. Minnie said they talk about that experience and Larry still wonders what happened to the little girl he rescued.
Working with the traffic police, he was trained to use the Jaws of Life and saw his fair share of grisly accidents and even death. But he is also credited with saving a life while on the job, pulling down one of his fellow officers to prevent him from being hit by a speeding drunk driver while they were directing traffic in a work zone. “I didn’t think about my own safety. I was just worried about my friend,” he said.
Larry lives in his own home in York, PA in a trailer that folks in the local Senior Center helped him purchase. He often volunteers at the Center for their yard sales and other daily activities, even though he now uses a walker.
Minnie and Penn-Mar have supported Larry for nearly five years, helping him to be as independent as possible. She works with him to support him in paying his own bills, schedules and drives him to appointments, and accompanies him on shopping trips.
She describes him as a “local hero” in the Delta community, known by nearly everyone who sees him out-and-about. “Larry has taught me so many things about what goes on with the fire calls and accidents,” said Minnie. “He still lights up when there is a call about a fire.”
Larry and Minnie go out together every day and she will sometimes drive him to the fire station when he hears a fire call on his monitor. She always notices that he won’t carry his phone with him, but the “reluctant retiree” makes sure he has a fire monitor with him everywhere he goes!
