Saturday, April 20, 2024 | St. Lawrence County, NY
This the start of a half-mile long procession of emergency vehicles on Elm Street in Potsdam on their way to the funeral in Canton of well-respected firefighter Brett Grandaw. By CRAIG FREILICH …
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This the start of a half-mile long procession of emergency vehicles on Elm Street in Potsdam on their way to the funeral in Canton of well-respected firefighter Brett Grandaw.
By CRAIG FREILICH
POTSDAM -- A half-mile long line of fire trucks and other emergency vehicles traveled from Potsdam to Canton for the funeral of late Pierrepont Volunteer Fire Department First Assistant Chief Brett Grandaw, who died last Wednesday at the age of 55.
Grandaw, born in Canton and a graduate of Canton High School, went on to get a degree in paramedics at Northeastern University. He was a paramedic and firefighter in Canton, and later in Hyannis, Mass. for 23 years.
For 17 years, he was a professional FEMA emergency worker who had been at the site of the collapsed World Trade Center, the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, the Atlanta Olympics bombing, and Hurricane Katrina.
The processions of colleagues began at the Seymour Funeral Home in Potsdam, where he had become a partner in the business after getting his mortuary science degree in 2006.
The line of trucks included units of the Potsdam, Canton, Colton, Madrid, Parishville, Massena, Norwood, Watertown, Pierrepont, West Potsdam and more North Country fire departments and rescue squads.
They were headed to the funeral at St. Mary’s Church in Canton for a Mass of Christian Burial. Firefighters planned to have a flag suspended by ladder trucks across the street in Canton as the processions passed underneath.
All this was due to the fact that Grandaw “had an amazing career,” said Glenn Seymour, partner with Grandaw in the Seymour Funeral Home.
“With his humility, you would never know the heroic measures he had taken to save lives,” Seymour said.
Memorial contributions may be made in his memory to the St. Mary's Parochial School, 2 Powers Street, Canton, NY 13617 or Pierrepont Volunteer Fire Department and First Responders, 62 Old County Road, Canton, NY 13617
Memories and condolences may be shared online at www.donaldsonfh.com or emailed to glennlseymour@gmail.com.
