Firehouse is honored to announce that its famed Heroism Award will hereafter be known as the Michael O. McNamee Award of Valor.
The Heroism Award was part of Firehouse’s larger awards program, the Heroism & Community Service Awards, which will now be known as the Firehouse Valor & Community Service Awards, still the largest awards program of its kind in the fire service.
The name change is part of a larger mission to change firefighters’ perspectives about what it means to be brave in the face of danger.
“It goes without saying that the actions taken by firefighters in the performance of their duties are in many cases courageous and heroic,” explained Firehouse Editor-in-Chief Tim Sendelbach. “The term hero has rightfully been used by the general public and many outside our profession to describe firefighters, but I believe that the word valor more appropriately describes the actions of a humble public servant.”
Sendelbach chose to name the award after Worcester, MA, Fire Department District Chief (ret.) Mike McNamee because of the courage he displayed at the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse Fire in December 1999, when he made the bold decision to stop additional Worcester firefighters from entering the building when there were already six lost inside. Although firefighters were eager to get inside to rescue their lost brothers, McNamee knew that if he allowed the firefighters to enter, they too would likely become victims, so he braced his feet on the doorjamb and put his hands over his head to more fully block the entrance.
“Recognizing acts of courage and bravery is a proud tradition of the American fire service, but in many cases, these awards have been limited to the recognition of the physical act of rescuing a victim from a hazardous environment while dismissing the risk of personal injury or death,” Sendelbach says. “It is important for us to acknowledge that in some cases, the critical decisions and/or preventative actions taken by an individual are equally deserving of recognition. As such, the goal of the Firehouse Valor and Community Service Awards program is to recognize actions based on the circumstances and the ultimate outcome.”
On the 10th anniversary of the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse tragedy, McNamee shared with Firehouse his feelings about that night, explaining that he doesn’t like to be called a hero for his actions. “I love this job and I just tried to make the right decisions,” he said. “It was a very, very clear decision. One that I have never second-guessed. One that I’m very glad I made because the number would have been higher than six. I don’t have a doubt about it.” McNamee added that some of the firefighters who had been eager to search for their fallen brothers told him after the fire that they understood why he made that decision and that he did the right thing.
The 2015 Michael O. McNamee Award of Valor will be presented to the winner during the opening ceremonies of Firehouse Expo in October 2016 in Nashville, TN. At this time, Sendelbach will also honor McNamee for his actions at the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse Fire.
Further, starting in 2016, the Firehouse Valor & Community Service Award winners will be featured in the October issue of Firehouse Magazine, to align with Firehouse Expo.
Nominations for the 2015 Firehouse Valor & Community Service Awards will open in January, with submissions due in April. To have your department’s acts of valor or community service considered for an award, please e-mail [email protected].
