Support for two Massachusetts families
The families of Chelsea Police Detective Scott Conley and Barnstable Police Sergeant Jason Sturgis were among those receiving support connected to this year’s Tunnel to Towers event in Massachusetts. Conley, an Army veteran, spent nearly three decades in law enforcement and died in 2024 after a lengthy occupational illness. His work included service on the FBI’s Violent Gang Task Force, where he helped address MS-13, and testimony before Congress in 2017, according to his profile from the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.
Conley’s wife, Elaine, died of leukemia seven months after his death at age 52, leaving four children, the Fall River Reporter reported. Tunnel to Towers has supported the family, while a separate community fundraising effort followed the deaths of both parents.
Sturgis served almost 20 years with the Barnstable Police Department and died in 2019 at age 42 after a work-related heart attack, according to WCVB and the foundation profile cited in that report. He led the department’s Community Impact Unit, where he advocated for homeless residents and people dealing with behavioral-health challenges. He was survived by his wife and three children.
State protections for public safety workers
Massachusetts law creates a line-of-duty presumption for certain heart disease and hypertension claims involving permanent police officers and firefighters who passed an entry examination without evidence of the condition. That provision appears in Chapter 32, Section 94 of the Massachusetts General Laws. A related cancer-presumption provision gives certain firefighters disability leave and benefits after at least five years of service. Employers may challenge that presumption by showing that workplace conditions were not a significant contributing factor, according to the Massachusetts Municipal Association.
What research says about firefighter cancer
Federal research provides broader occupational-health context for the state’s firefighter cancer-benefit rules. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, cancer is a leading cause of death among firefighters, and research suggests firefighters face higher risks of certain cancers than the general population. NIOSH describes the broader health risk, while Massachusetts law sets the conditions for a legal presumption and related benefits.
The Boston event
The 2025 Boston Tunnel to Towers 5K took place at Castle Island in South Boston and marked the event’s fifth Boston anniversary, according to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation and RunSignup. WCVB reported that thousands of people participated, some in firefighter gear, and that the course traveled around the Sugar Bowl before returning to Castle Island. The station also reported that the run raised more than $100,000 for families of fallen first responders and military members.
The name behind the foundation
The organization is named for FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller, who was off duty on September 11, 2001, when he responded to the attacks. After the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel was closed, he carried 60 pounds of equipment on foot toward the World Trade Center, where he was killed, according to the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service. The foundation now provides mortgage-free homes and other assistance to families of fallen first responders and military members, according to its mission as described by WCVB.
