The other day I was surfing the internet…this is not uncommon at all! I was going from site to site. When I get going I might end up with 5 windows open with 10 or 15 tabs each which is not very easy to keep track of.

However, on this one particular day I was reading about one department going through competency drills for firefighting (some call them evaluated evolutions). Unfortunately I cannot recollect the site where I was looking, but it isn’t detrimental to my point either.

While I was perusing the site something caught my eye. The t-shirt that one of the evaluators was wearing was eerily familiar. I recognized the shirt and instantly felt a connection. I thought to myself…”Self, I have that shirt”! The shirt is one of my favorites because it is a long sleeve t-shirt of which I do not have many. Can anyone guess the color? That’s right it is navy blue like most of my t-shirts (dept. shirts excluded although they are navy blue as well). The shirt spells out FDNY on the back and is the memorial shirt for Daniel Pujdak.

I will understand if some of you are wondering who Daniel Pujdak is, but everyone should already know. Daniel died in the Line of Duty. He was 23 years old. You can read all about Daniel at DanielPujdak.com.

Firefighter Daniel F. Pujdak, Ladder Company 146

With regret, the Department announces the death of Firefighter Daniel F. Pujdak, L-146 (appointed September 25, 2005) which occurred on Thursday, June 21, 2007, as result of injuries sustained while operating at Brooklyn Box 247, transmitted at 1655 hours on June 21, 2007.

The profit from the sales of the shirt I bought go towards a scholarship in his name.

We always talk about how our fallen brothers are not forgotten. That t-shirt has helped me remember a fallen brother that I otherwise would not have known and might have forgotten. I have other similar shirts like the Fathers Day LODD (Ford, Fahey, Downing), 343 on 9/11, and Charleston 9 for examples while I am not shuffling through shirts in my closet.

My point is that we must remember the sacrifices of our fallen brothers. We must learn from their stories and tell those stories to the next generation.

I assure you that I could ask my brothers at the fire station if they know who Daniel Pujdak is and they would give me a blank stare. I have talked about him before of what I know and tried to tell the story just like I do for a lot of LODD’s when I am given the chance.

I almost always get a comment when I wear that t-shirt. Usually I get “who is that”? I tell the story again…

We must never forget!

Below is a slideshow of Daniel’s life and funeral. Never Forget!

Below is a bonus video of Daniel’s body being escorted in an engine during his funeral. The video is short and ends when the cameraman puts the camera down to salute the fallen firefighter. Never Forget!