See classic emergency vehicles on the Woodward Dream Cruise
Mark Phelan of the Detroit Free Press toured several vintage emergency vehicles on the Woodward Dream Cruise, including a fire engine imported from Japan.
Lee Chapman and his son Robbie probably had a lot to talk about when the 22-year-old returned home from his first shift as a firefighter with the Bloomington County Fire Department in Indiana.
But Robbie never made it home. He was killed on the morning of October 7, 2012, after finishing a night shift, when his car veered off North Kinser Pike and struck a tree.
Mr Chapman’s family, friends and firefighters who trained and worked with him were heartbroken.
In honor of their colleague, they draped a black cloth over Truck No. 3, a 1990 Ford pumper, and parked it outside Allen Funeral Home during Chapman’s service.
And when that was done, they loaded his coffin onto their backs. The fire truck was one of 14 in line to lead the two-mile funeral procession to the family cemetery where Chapman is buried.
His father, a former Bloomington firefighter, was moved beyond words by his kind gesture.
“They buried him respectfully. This was the truck that took him home and the coffin was right there. It was used for many years as a front-line truck and was there when Robbie started his job.”
On a sunny October day, we were standing on the Chapman family property north of Bloomington. A 35-year-old fire engine was parked in the grass there.
Lee Chapman told the fire chief in 2012 that he would be interested in selling the truck.
10 years have passed. Three years ago, the pump truck was sold at a buyer-only auction funded by taxpayers. It became the property of the Showick Township Fire Department in Lawrence County.
Lee Chapman wasn’t giving up. He contacted Shawswick Fire Chief Bob Brown and told him he wanted to buy the truck if it became disabled.
“I told him about it, and I think he was choking a little bit on the phone while we were talking,” Ms. Chapman recalled. Brown said he uses the truck for training and for kids who want to see it up close, but he will let him know if he decides to sell it.
Earlier this month, on October 6, Mr. Chapman was contacted by Mr. Brown. “Bobby called me the day before the 13th.”th Robbie’s death anniversary. He said he was a man of his word and would give me a chance first. ”
The next day, Chapman and his wife, Barbara, drove to the Lawrence County Fire Department to see the truck. The mission, conducted on the anniversary of his son’s death, was bittersweet.
“They didn’t change anything, the Bloomington Township letters were still there,” Chapman said. “It looked just like it did the day Robbie was taken to the cemetery.”
Chapman said Brown was happy to sign the deal. “He said, ‘Lee, I’ll never forget your story behind that truck.'”
They paid $5,000 to have the vehicle shipped to its new home, where it has become the centerpiece of a small fire truck collection.
“I would have paid a million dollars for this,” Chapman says proudly, running his hands over the shiny red metal.
Want to talk about cars and trucks? Contact My Favorite Ride reporter Laura Lane at llane@heraldt.com or 812-318-5967.
