Stoneham firefighter heads to Bosnia
Published on August 22nd, 2001
STONEHAM, MA - Sean Fitzgerald is leaving the Stoneham Fire Department for six months of even more dangerous duty.
The 22-year-old Oak Ridge Road resident is heading to Bosnia in September as part of the Massachusetts Army National Guard 181st Light Infantry Regiment.
“I’m upset about the timing,” Fitzgerald says. He started at the Fire Department in April. “But I’m happy to go, to take my turn.”
The last time a National Guard combat unit from Massachusetts was deployed for U.S. military duty was during World War II.
“This is a historic event,” Fitzgerald’s father says with pride.
Fitzgerald comes from a family of firefighters and soldiers. His father John and Uncle James are Vietnam veterans. James is a Boston Firefighter.
“My mother (Patricia) is nervous, and my father is too, but he doesn’t show it,” Fitzgerald says.
Fitzgerald enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1997 after graduating from B.C. High. (He’s also a St. Pat’s alumnus.) When his commitment ended, he decided to join the National Guard while pursuing a career in firefighting.
“The army is a good thing — to serve your country and stay in touch with what’s going on around the world,” Fitzgerald says.
Sgt. Fitzgerald of the second platoon in “C” Company, 1st Battalion 181st Light Infantry of the Massachusetts National Guard is part of Stabilization Force 10, a peacekeeping force assigned to patrol the streets of Bosnia. The Americans serve as part of a collaborative force with other nations, including Russia, to maintain the Dayton Peace Agreement.
“We go on ‘presence patrols,’ set up check points for weapons, conduct gate guards, and basically police the area,” Fitzgerald says.
He has trained for this mission, and he says he’s ready to do his duty. Fitzgerald just missed a deployment to Bosnia in December of 1999 at the end of his army service.
Chief Larry Lamey and the guys at the department have been supportive of their new co-worker.
“They told me to keep my head down and to hurry up and get back,” Fitzgerald says.
Fitzgerald and the rest of C Company reported to their Home Station at 450 Concord Ave. in Cambridge this morning, Aug. 22, for uniform inspection and equipment issue. Tomorrow the soldiers attend a reception in their honor at the Lexington Green. Then they go to Fort Dix, N.J. for three weeks of final instruction before heading overseas.
C Company Captain Erik Ruhmann is glad Sean’s coming along.
“He’s a dedicated soldier, exceptionally technically competent and a real leader among his peers,” Ruhmann said. “He’s just one of those go-to guys.”
Friends and family in Stoneham hope that this go-to guy comes back safe.
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