TAYLOR, Pa. — Joseph Czerw is a name you'll see often in the borough of Taylor on a monument along Union Street and on every one of Taylor Hose Company #1's ladder trucks.
"All of our ladder trucks have always been dedicated to Joe. And from now through the future, all of our trucks will be dedicated to Joe to make sure that he is never forgotten," said Raymond Mochan, President of Taylor Hose Company #1.
Joe Czerw shared his name with his son, who was only two when Joe died fighting a fire in Taylor on February 27th of 1982. Joe Jr. and his family were in the crowd as the fire department marked the 40th anniversary of that fire.
"I just wanted to thank everybody from the community that came out and everybody from the fire department, the police department, the council, and everything. It was really a nice touch; it was really a special way of remembering him today," said Joe Czerw Jr.
"We figured this was the least that we could do to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Joe dying in the line of duty," said Mochan.
While this day is significant, the firefighters who serve Taylor say it's important to honor Joe Czerw's sacrifice every day.
An effort Joe's widow, Helene, says has helped her all these years.
"They haven't missed a year, since 1982, they go to the cemetery and put a flower on the grave. It's like I said, it's something when you know the person, but these people, some of them weren't even born, they just go by what they're hearing about him. They're keeping his memory alive," said Helene Czerw.
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