Bellevue Fire Dept., family send memorial for fallen firefighter to Rose Parade

BELLEVUE REPORTER | Allison Deangelis 

Deanna Carr’s firefighter helmet sits on a table with some other momentos from her life (Allison DeAngelis/staff photo)

Two years ago, around 150 Bellevue firefighters lined the halls of Virginia Mason Hospital to say goodbye to their comrade, Deanna Carr. An American flag had been draped over the body of the firefighter of 22 years as doctors wheeled her body into the operating room to start the organ donation process.

“They were awash in emotion. They had never seen anything like this before,” former Bellevue firefighter and current Deputy Chief of Eastside Fire and Rescue Richard Burke said. “But that was the respect and what she deserved. That was our way of keeping her memory alive.”

But in the midst of their sorrow, the crowd found a reason to smile. Even in her death, Carr was giving the gift of life.

“The thing that I remember most were the faces of everyone that was there — her friends, her family and her coworkers. Everyone’s face sticks out to me because there was so much to read. First and foremost, a lot of grief. I thought, “Wow, this person must have really, really mattered to people,’ because the loss is so powerful and I can see how much pain, how much sadness, how much longing is in everyone’s face. And then I saw something really beautiful happen. As the process started to switch and we began to accept the very unfortunate truth that Deanna was not going to survive, I started to see pride on people’s faces. It really was about the way the conversation shifted to: Deanna’s going to save lives,” said LifeCenter Northwest employee Jonathan Merker, who works with families like Carr’s to arrange organ donations. Continue reading

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