Byram's first Line Of Duty Death Ceremony

BYRAM — On Saturday, family, friends and area residents gathered to mourn the death and honor the life of firefighter Richard Choate at the Cranberry Lake Fire Station.

On Sept. 8, Choate was driving one of three department vehicles that were called to respond to a fire. The alarm was minor and shortly after he returned to the Lackawanna station,

Choate was found unresponsive inside his personal vehicle later that day, which had run off the road into a wooded area. Police and emergency medical personnel responded and found him in cardiac arrest.

He suffered a heart attack and passed away at a local hospital. He was 68.

Choate gave 24 years of dedicated service to Byram’s Volunteer Fire Department and helped to train hundreds of firefighters at the Sussex County Fire Academy over the years.

Firefighters from the Byram Volunteer Departments and departments as far away as Flanders, Mendham and Montague lined Route 206 in front of the Byram firehouse. They stood at attention dressed in class A uniforms with mourning bands and white gloves as the procession of fire trucks from Byram Township Fire Department passed by.

Choate’s gear, including helmet, boots and jacket were placed on the front fender of Engine 6, the engine that Choate had driven to his last call on Sept. 8. Along with the lighted dynamic sign and memorial flags, an American Flag was hoisted on a line between the Ladder 1 truck from Stanhope FD and the aerial ladder truck from Hackettstown FD to set the scene for remembrance and honor.

Tributes to Choate included a traditional firefighters Color Guard formed by members of the Byram FD, Bagpiper FF John Bradley from the Clifton FD, a short speech by Mayor James Oskovitch and a presentation of the folded American Flag to Choate’s wife Audrey and of his helmet to his daughter Casey.

The ceremony is the first of its kind under the Home Town Hero’s Act, as Choate will be Byram Township’s first Line Of Duty Death because he answered and actively participated in a fire call within 24 hours of his death.

A ceremonial “Last Alarm” live pager and call was made from the Sparta dispatcher which was broadcasted over the event PA system, representing the end of Choate's firefighting duty.

As the red siren fastened above Byram’s firehouse wailed, a hawk circled above the audience just before the Air Three medivac helicopter from Atlantic conducted the official flyover.

Last words
As Byram Township loses one of it’s veteran volunteer firefighters, the members of the firehouse hold the friendship, brotherhood and training that Choate passed along to them close to their hearts:

Audrey O’Connell Choate (Richard Choate's wife):

“Volunteers make community and we have such strong community — it's been wonderful living here. We moved to Jersey (from Brooklyn) because they had volunteers and Richie wanted to join the fire department here. He loved every minute of it and he did go with his 'boots on,' which is what he would have wanted. I’m so glad we got to raise our daughter here in the safety of community."

Byram LT Firefighter Greg Matthews:

“He never had a harsh word to say about anybody. He was very diplomatic but very quiet and intelligent — he knew much more than anyone could have imagined. He kept to himself a lot until he got to know you, then he would open up and share things with you. A lot of times it was just the two of us on the truck. We would get into a conversation and he would share things that people didn’t know about him. He had a lot of hobbies and interests and was really an outgoing guy."

Byram Fire Dept. Chief Chuck Putz:

“Rich was a great friend, fireman and great teacher. He did everything he could around the firehouse, helping out with training and drills. He was a very loyal friend, honest and trustworthy. You could always count on him. He was good at fire attack and he was a past instructor at the Sussex County Fire Academy. He was a bundle of knowledge."

Byram Firefighter and Vice President Eugene Zisa:

“Rich was one helluva guy, he taught me a lot. We had something in common — my daughter is in Arizona and his daughter lives in Arizona and we always talked about that. We were both into target shooting together and he took me to the range numerous times. He was one of a kind and I don’t think I'll meet another man like him. I was on many fires with him and many training drills. He taught me a lot and hopefully I taught him things. We were good buddies."

Byram Fire Dept. President Larry Putz:

“I’ve known Richie since 1990 and he always sported the same smile from 1990 to the day he passed. He was a man of very few words and never had a bad word to say about anybody. He was just a good hearted person in general and we’re going to miss him. He was the backbone to the department-he was a past president, instructor and a great teacher. We’re trained to help and Richie was a very big part of that."

Byram Firefighter Michael Sawicki (The last firefighter to work with Choate on Sept. 8 and one of the newer recruits to the department):

“He was a great guy, good person and a good mentor especially speaking for the younger guys in the department that are fairly new. He took time out of his day to teach you anything you didn’t understand from basic firefighter knowledge to complex ways of pumping the trucks. Always a phone call away for everyone. He’ll definitely be missed. He had a positive attitude even in the worst scenarios when everything could have went wrong he was always someone who would look at the bright side of things or crack a quick joke."

After the public Line Of Duty Death Ceremony, family and firefighters moved inside the station for a private reception and celebration of Choate’s life. It included food, picture boards and sharing stories from his 24 years of dedicated service to the Byram Fire Department. This included his “Brooklyn” way of diplomacy while serving as the department president, having to be a volunteer firefighter in an area that doesn’t have many street signs, and tales of his small aircraft piloting adventures.