There's a lot of talk these days about what we're missing in the fire service. And with all this discussion of leadership, of mentorship, sharing, caring and passing down values, traditions and the rich heritage of firefighters, I thought it appropriate to revisit a very personal blog I wrote two years ago today.

When we talk about people who have influenced our careers and our lives, many people often refer to that person as someone who they didn't realize had made such an impact on them until they were no longer in our lives. My friend Bob Newell was one of those people.

I guess I had taken Bob for granted. I had underestimated how much of an influence he had been on me, how much he was someone who's friendship I cherished. His death, and these realizations really took me by surprise.

Although Bob has been gone for two years now, his memory and his legacy certainly live on. His name is prominently displayed on our Wall of Honor in the Erie County Fire Academy where I work. His biography is printed in the book that sits on the podium next to the Wall, describing his contributions to the fire service. We still use many of the programs and lesson plans that Bob created.

His photo is mixed amongst collages of classes and characters that hang on our academy walls. I still get a pit in my stomach when I watch our Firefighter 1 Boot Camp video in which he is interviewed, talking about the importance of training our replacements.

But those are just the visual reminders. I can't speak to hardly a single leader in our county's fire service without seeing a Newell influence in the way they talk about training, their attitude towards safety or just their love for this job.

Following is the eulogy I had the honor of delivering at his funeral which was held in his second home: the Hamburg Fire Station. As hard as it is to think about Bob without missing him, revisiting these memories has the same effect on me that Newell always had. It makes me smile.

http://tigerschmittendorf.com/2010/01/22/its-been-two-years-now/

http://tigerschmittendorf.com/2008/11/11/missing-a-mentor-what-abou...