Man of Service

My father was a man of service. As early as i can remember he was a volunteer fireman. When the call came (a different ring on our telephone to alert him), he dropped whatever he was doing and went without a question. This was the case morning, noon or dead of night, for more than 25 years. In 1964 he offered up his skills to the New York World's Fair, joining their team of emergency rescue workers. Rescue work eventually became his career as a paramedic for New York City, working on an ambulance out of Long Island Jewish Hospital, a job he did into his retirement. He eventually made his way back to photography when he became a civilian volunteer for the U.S. Army at Ft. Dietrich. They finally ended up paying him for his time. And when he moved to Hawaii, near my big sister, he became a National Park volunteer working at the memorial for the sunk U.S.S. Arizona.
Two packages arrived from my sister yesterday and in one were his fireman and paramedic shields. I already had his World's Fair badge, a treasure i had lusted over since i was a boy. So i had to do some quick photos, of course. I would image i might do something a bit more extensive with these in the future. Evidence of a good man's life well lived...

A Man of Service ©David Sorcher 2013

©David Sorcher 2013

Edit: Sorry, i had intended to place a link to my project, In the Line of Duty, a brief documentary series follow the work of three others who dedicate themselves to a life of service. You can check that out here.