Over the weekend, hundreds of individuals, including families and fellow firefighters, gathered in Sacramento to pay respects to 36 firefighters who have made the ultimate sacrifice. As reported by ABC10, the names of the fallen were added to the California Firefighter Memorial at California State Capitol Park during a solemn ceremony.
Among those remembered was U.S. Forest Service San Bernardino firefighter Matthew Watt, who passed away in 2022 at the age of 34. Recalling Watt, Tanya Nolen, a family member, told ABC10, "Loving, care, all the above. He was a good man." The ceremony was a chance not only to honor those who lost their lives but also to jointly acknowledge the grief that their families continue to shoulder.
Another poignant story shared at the event as recounted by KCRA was that of Barbara Dockery, a 20-year firefighter with the Isleton Fire Department, who succumbed to cancer in 2021. Her widower, Dean Dockery, said she "always wants to help others. She was an angel," a statement obtained by ABC10. Moreover, California Professional Firefighters representative Darrell Roberts highlighted a harrowing statistic: a majority of line-of-duty deaths are due to cancer, accounting for 23 of the 36 names added this year.
This expansion ensures there will be space to continue to remember fallen firefighters for the next 100 years. In a statement secured by KCRA, Roberts expressed a somber truth: "Sadly, we know that every year we're adding more and more to the wall." The event was also a venue for Governor Gavin Newsom, who emphasized the gravity of the occasion, stating “States and nations not only reveal themselves by the people they produce, they reveal themselves ultimately by the people that they remember, the people they honor.”
