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Junior Fair Lawn Firefighter Terrance Pridmore, 17, “dropped everything to help out with the fire even though his dad passed away last month,” his mother said after the Oak Street blaze.
The wake for Terrance Pridmore Sr. was Thursday evening at the Browning-Forshay Funeral Home, 557 Lafayette Ave., Hawthorne, NJ 07506.
From the time his son was born, the elder Pridmore courageously battled gastrointestinal stromal tumors, which produce the rarest of all cancers.
“He put up a great fight,” Pridmore’s daughter, Mariel, wrote to family and friends, “but now he gets to rest in his well-deserved peace.”
Fair Lawn firefighters planned to turn out in force to support her brother and pay respects to their father.
A day earlier, the Fair Lawn High School senior joined them on Oak Street, where a roaring blaze destroyed a vacant home that was being sold.
SEE: Fire Ravages Vacant Fair Lawn House
“Terrance’s dad battled my son's entire life,” said his mom, Kathy Pridmore. “My son decided he wanted to dedicate his life helping others.”
The teen's commitment is also being admired by the borough's finest.
"What people don’t realize sometimes is what happens in people’s lives, especially our first responders," PBA Local 67 President Luis Vasquez said. "Even after suffering a tragic loss in his family -- and I’m sure with a lot on his mind -- that didn't stop Junior Firefighter Pridmore.
"His dedication to our town really showed when he stood side-by-side with his fellow firefighters.
"Your father would truly be proud," Vasquez told Terrance on Wednesday. "I know today is Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, but today we appreciate you."
VISITING: 5-8 p.m. Thurs., Jan. 9, at the Browning-Forshay Funeral Home, 557 Lafayette Ave., Hawthorne.
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