Fallen Iowa firefighters to be honored at service Sunday

CORALVILLE - A family vacation in May 1989 started a journey for Mike Reuman, who worked for 30 years as a volunteer firefighter, to establish an Iowa Firefighters Memorial.

During the trip, Reuman - who at the time was serving as treasurer for the Iowa Firefighters Association - stumbled across Michigan's memorial.

After visiting the site, he said he knew Iowa needed something similar.

After his brother, Reg, a 20-year volunteer firefighter with the Traer Fire Department in Tama County, died of a heart attack, he was given the green light by the Iowa Firefighter's Association board of directors to pursue the creation of an Iowa memorial.

'The president said, ‘Mike, why don't you be the chairman?' ” Reuman said. 'That's really where it started. We didn't have money in the bank. We didn't have anything.”

Then, tragedy hit again when two West Burlington firefighters died in an arson fire on Jan. 1, 1990.

'It was a slap in the face and I said, ‘We need to do something,' ” Reuman said. 'At that point in time we started doing fundraisers, firefighters were sending donations. ... We sold T-shirts. You name it, we did it.”

Three years into the process, it was time to find a home for the memorial. The criteria? A central Iowa location close to the highway with a specific number of acres.

Proposals were submitted by 17 communities and, eventually a spot at 1 Russell Slade Blvd. in Coralville was selected.

'It's a beautiful, beautiful place,” Reuman said.

The Iowa Firefighters Memorial was dedicated in April 1994 to 'forever honor, celebrate and inspire the spirit, courage and service of Iowa firefighters past, present and future.”

It aims to serve as an inspiration to Iowans of all ages to 'continue the tradition in Iowa of service to each other and to our communities.”

Each year, a memorial service takes place at the site.

This year's service is at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. The public is invited to attend and asked to bring lawn chairs as seating is limited.

The invocation and benediction will be presented by the Rev. David Arnold of Coralville, Iowa firefighters will conduct the ceremonial placing of gear, Jack Runge of Buckeye will give a recitation of missing members, and Iowa Pipes and Drums, along with soloist Glenn Chatfield of North Liberty, will perform 'Amazing Grace.”

This year's service honors 104 firefighters whose names have been added to the wall in the past year, including three who died in the line of duty: Douglas McCauley of Des Moines, James Franciskovich of West Burlington, and Steven Buser of Ames.

'At the end, the song 'God Bless the USA” is played and we release black and purple and helium balloons,” Reuman said.

Families and fire departments are invited to apply to place the names of fallen firefighters on the wall. The cost is $100 per name. Today, the memorial walls at the site include the names of more than 2,600 firefighters, including 147 who died while on duty, a designation that is broadly defined by the U.S. Fire Administration to include not only those killed while battling fires, but those who die as a result of any duty related to the job.

An estimated 5,000 to 10,000 visitors come to the memorial each year. The visitor center is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. May through October and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. November through April.

'It just absolutely blows your mind the number of people that stop there and visit,” said Reuman, adding the guest book includes visitors from across the United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe.

l Comments: (319) 368-8531; alexandra.connor@thegazette.com

If You Go

What: Iowa Firefighters Memorial service

When: 10:30 a.m. Sunday

Where: Iowa Firefighters Memorial, 1 Russell Slade Blvd., Coralville

Candlelight Vigil: 9 p.m. Saturday

Info: iowafirememorial.org