Gov addresses the memorial service of Chief Dan Packer�s

August 7, 2008

AS WRITTEN

Good Afternoon.

Thank you all for coming to honor Dan and support his family today.

We are all deeply saddened that God has called Dan home so early�and I want to say to Marylee (pronounced Marilee, Dan�s wife), and children and grandchildren -- my heart goes out to you.

I also want to tell the men and women of the East Pierce Fire and Rescue � I�m also very sad for you. You also were his family and I know it is very hard for you.

I saw Dan less than a month ago at the Washington Fire Chief�s Convention in Wenatchee, where Dan was the out-going president.

It was such a wonderful evening, and a big part of it was Dan. He was so down-to-earth and so kind. He truly made a fine impression, and is the reason that event is so memorable.

Dan was a true man of the West � a rugged guy�a bull rider in Montana before he came here and took up the dangerous, hard work of fire-fighting and emergency response in 1981.

They don�t come any more rugged than that.

But Dan was a truly caring man. He was the kind of man who put up pictures of his kids and grandkids all along the dashboard of his work vehicle, and who was not afraid to talk about how much he loved his family.

Dan truly loved the fire service, and he was not only a visionary, but a doer.

He pulled together East Pierce Fire and Rescue into what it is today � an effective fire fighting and emergency response organization that helps hundreds of Washingtonians every week.

Dan�s work was all about people � about protecting them from harm. That�s why he asked to go to Northern California � to help fight a fire that threatened people and property.

That�s why as a leader among Washington fire chiefs, he successfully lobbied the Legislature and me to change laws to protect people � such as a ban on �teak surfing� and a requirement that cigarettes sold in Washington don�t smolder and start fires.

We�re all really going to miss Dan. And let me say again, my heart goes out to his family and friends.

But here�s something very rare, and something we can always say about Dan�

He was a protector�

�Of his family and friends�

�And of anybody and everybody he came across.

That was Dan�s calling in life and that is Dan�s legacy.