Who was Stephen Gerard Siller and what did he do on Sept. 11, 2001?

Siller was the youngest of 7 children born to Mae and George Siller.

At age 8, he lost his father and 18 months later his mother, leaving him an orphan to be raised by his older siblings.

Due to the love of his siblings and the values his parents taught all of them, he grew up to be a dedicated Brooklyn, NY, firefighter.

On September 11, 2001, Stephen, 34, finished his shift at Brooklyn’s Squad 1, and was on his way to play golf with his brothers when he got word over his scanner of an airliner hitting the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

He called his wife Sally and asked her to tell his brothers he would catch up with them later.

He returned to Squad 1 for his gear and drove his truck to the entrance of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel but it had been closed for security purposes.

Determined to carry out his duty, he strapped 60 pounds of gear on his back and raced on foot through the tunnel to the Twin Towers, where he gave up his life while saving others.

Stephen had everything to live for: his wife and their 5 children, an extended family and friends.

His parents were lay Franciscans who taught their children the guiding philosophy of St. Francis of Assisi: “While we have time, let us do good.”

Author and family friend Jay Price wrote: “Every momentous event, even a tragedy, has its symbolic figures. Sept. 11 was no different. It just had more of them.

Stephen Siller’s life and heroic death serve as a reminder to live life to the fullest and spend our time on earth doing good.

That is his legacy.