BERWICK, Pa. — A crowd of family and friends gathered Thursday morning outside Heller Funeral Home in Nescopeck to honor the life of Tommy Rinehimer of Berwick.
Rinehimer, 42, passed away Friday night after a front-end loader he was operating fell down an embankment in Salem Township.
"Tommy is a hell of a guy, a very good friend of mine. This is a sad day."
Family and friends remember him as a hard worker who started his own landscaping supply company.
"All around good guy, he was just awesome, funny. Worked seven days a week, dark till dark. He just wouldn't give up," said Wayne Harvey.
His young son Ethan wanted to send his dad off on something he loved.
Paying tribute to his love for restoring trucks, Tommy's casket was placed on the back of his Diamond Reo tractor.
Ahead of the funeral, his son put out a call for any truck drivers to join them for the procession. The community delivered.
Crossing the bridge from Nescopeck into Berwick, dozens and dozens of trucks followed.
"It just shows the caliber person that Tommy is and the whole family, the way that he was raised, and everyone loves the whole family, all of the Rinehimers. They are super people, good business people, humble, kind," said family friend Gary Spencer.
People even lined the streets and waited by the bridge to see the procession pass by.
"Oh, I couldn't believe it myself. I know he had a lot of friends, but when I came to this little town and saw all of these big trucks and all of these people, it's like the President of the United States just died," said Harvey.
Reinheimer was laid to rest at the Pine Grove Cemetery in Berwick.
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