A tribute

With a cheery “Morning Lieutenant Mike!,” third shift Lt. Gene Marcheschi began his day. You had the feeling he was happy to be on duty; he looked forward to any challenge that would be thrown at his shift that day. He always said, “I'm sure we'll see you later,” meaning he expected a busy day. This job was the love of his life.

Sadly, the Blue Island Fire Department lost Lt. Gene on Tuesday, May 13th. We lost a member of our family, a vibrant, energy-filled man that trained us, joked with us, yelled at us, and laughed with us. That same day, the citizens of Blue Island lost one of, if not the best, fireman on the department.

The officers and men of this department have gone through a wide range of emotions this last week. We are all deeply saddened by the loss of our friend. We stayed with him as long as we could during the wake. We accompanied him to the cemetery. We stood and cried as we said our final farewell. We will all miss him.

I would like to thank everyone who attended the services, sent food, cards, flowers, and well wishes to the Blue Island Fire Department. It is greatly appreciated by all of the firemen and officers.

Goodbye, Lt. Gene.

from Michael B. Kaliski, Lieutenant Blue Island Fire Department