There is a parable in the Bible which speaks to the joy which the shepherd experiences upon finding a lost sheep. The job of the shepherd is, was, and always will be, to keep their flock safe. This is a theme that runs through the Bible time and again. It has also bee a way of life for countless tens of thousands of people for centuries.
Reference is often made to the individual who strays from the rest of the flock, as well as the dangers that individual might face. One of the best examples of this analogy comes from one of my favorite old war movies, "The Fighting 69th." This is a story based upon the exploits of a famous regiment from the New York National Guard.
The late Pat O'Brien played the role of Father Francis Duffy, the regimental chaplain. The late James Cagney played the role of Jerry Plunkett, the young lad who goes astray. Throughout the movie, Father Duffy works to make a believer out of Plunkett. In the end, he wins over the unbeliever.
One of the great lines comes when Father Duffy utters the prayer from Luke 15. It goes something like this:
"What man of you having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine and go after that until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it upon his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost" (Luke 15: 4-6).
My friends, this is how it is in the world of firefighter safety. We are losing people who have strayed from the way of safe operations.
Last week in Baltimore, a number of us participated in one of the mini-summits held by the National Fallen Firefighter's Foundation (NFFF). A group of us worked a long day seeking ways in which to create ways to implement the 16 initiatives created by the NFFF at its original Firefighter Life Safety Summit in Tampa last year.
This means a great deal to me as I was a participant in the original summit and the mini-summit at the Fire Department Instructor's Conference back in April. We all know what is killing our people. It is not rocket science to count up the numbers and tally the results. Fire people are dying in the main from health-related and stupidity-induced problems.
The top killer again last years, according to the latest National Fire Protection Association statistics was, "
