In June we brought you the story of Michigan firefighter Brad Wilson, who faced a diagnosis of mesothelioma. His brothers at the firehouse rallied around the 25-year veteran of the Portage Fire Department, working his shifts so that he could obtain long-term disability leave, and helping raise money for him to travel to Houston for treatment.

Sadly, the Kalamazoo Gazette reports that Brad has lost his fight. He passed away Monday, Dec. 29, 2008, at age 56, from health issues compounded by mesothelioma, the paper reported.

The newspaper quotes Jim Kelecava, a fellow firefighter, as saying, “When you’re in this profession, there’s a brotherhood you feel with your co-workers, and that’s the same strong bond we all felt with Brad.” They say his willingness to put others first will be his legacy.

Wilson was laid to rest on Saturday, Jan. 3.

We are saddened to learn of Wilson’s passing, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.

Tags: Brad Wilson, Houston, mesothelioma, Michigan, Portage Fire Department

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 14th, 2009 at 5:09 pm and is filed under News, People. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.