Winners of Brothers Helping Brothers “Heart of the Fire Service” awards are (from left) Charles Petty, William Leveille, George T. Luck Jr., Stephen Molnar and Scott Pruiksma. MONROE – Firefighters not only take risks to protect others, some of the bravest do even more for their communities.
To recognize their efforts, Brothers Helping Brothers, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping families of New Jersey firefighters killed or disabled in the line of duty, has created the Heart of the Fire Service awards. The honors will be given out annually.
The first batch of heroes received their awards during an April 12 dinner at the East Franklin Firehouse in Somerset. The five recipients this year were Stephen Molnar, of Monroe; William Leveille, of South Amboy; George T. Luck Jr., of Kingston; Charles Petty, of Robbinsville; and Scott Pruiksma, of Midland Park.
“These men received these awards not only for giving their all to their fire companies, but also for giving back to the community,” said Rich Hayes, a Monroe Township fire official and founder of Brothers Helping Brothers. “They may be coaching youth leagues, working at the blood bank or serving on town committees. They are totally dedicated and really care about their neighbors and their towns.”
Former Fire Chief Stephen Molnar embodies those qualities. He and his wife, Marie, have been married 57 years, and for 29 of those years he has been a volunteer fireman.
“He loves helping people,” Marie Molnar said.
“It gets in your system, and you just want to keep doing it,” her husband said.
There is also the satisfaction of saving lives.
“I remember one time we were told there was a baby in one of the upper bedrooms. I was the officer on the scene and had to send one of my men up there. He brought that baby down safe and sound. None of us will ever forget it,” Molnar recalled.
Molnar has been a grand knight with the Knights of Columbus and is a lifetime member of the American Legion and VFW. He suffered a stroke in October, but that hasn’t slowed him down too much. He is still chaplain for the Applegarth Fire Co. in Monroe. He is also a volunteer patient representative at Saint Peter’s University Hospital, New Brunswick.
“I was a Eucharistic minister at Robert Wood Johnson in Hamilton, but I had to give it up. It was too far to drive,” he said with regret.
Molnar is grateful for the positive attitude of his wife and children.
“Sometimes you have to get up and leave a hot dinner,” he noted. “They never complained. I couldn’t have done all these things without their support.”
For Charles Luck Jr., firefighting has been a family affair. His father and grandfather were firemen. After 41 years, there are many calls that stand out in his mind.
“Some of them did not always go well, but the rescues and good saves make it all worthwhile,” the former chief said.
Luck grew up in the historic Kingston section of South Brunswick.
“Kingston is small, but it played an important role in the formation of our country,” he said.
Luck is vice president of the Kingston Historical Society and in his spare time dons the clothes of an early Colonialist and speaks to elementary school students about the early history of the town and the country.
In September, the community will be celebrating the 225th anniversary of the meeting of the Continental Congress at Princeton. Luck, who is active in the First Presbyterian Church, will take on the role of its most celebrated minister, John Witherspoon, the only minister to sign the Declaration of Independence. He became president of the college that would later be known as Princeton University.
Recently, Kingston was given village status by the state, and Luck has the satisfaction of knowing that he was part of the original committee, known as the Kingston Initiative, which set that designation as one of its goals.
While he is proud of his community, he is modest about his own contributions.
“It’s great to be able to give back,” he said.
During the awards dinner, Dr. Joseph Apuzzio, whose son Kevin died in the line of duty two years ago in Franklin Township, spoke of an issue that is important to the volunteer firefighters, who man most New Jerseys communities. Although they receive similar training and face the same dangers as paid fire companies, volunteers do not always receive the same support and benefits when tragedy occurs. Kevin’s parents are supporting legislation that would provide increased survivor pensions and disability insurance for volunteer emergency workers. It would be known as Kevin Apuzzio’s law.
Brothers Helping Brothers originally started to assist the families of Sept. 11 firefighters, but now helps those of firefighters in New Jersey. It has distributed more than $80,000 to nine families of New Jersey firefighters lost while fighting fires.
Michele McDonnell, one of the cochairs of the awards event, has been with the organization from the start.
“At first, I was just involved because I worked with Rich and thought it was a good cause, but now my husband, Jeffrey McDonnell, is a volunteer fireman,” she said.
For information, visit www.brothershelpingbrothers. net or contact McDonnell at [email protected].