Pennsylvania firefighters and a crowd of community supporters broke ground in Somerset County on Aug. 6 for a permanent memorial dedicated to every Pennsylvania firefighter who has died in the line of duty.
The Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Memorial will be built at the Remember Me Rose Garden in Stoystown, a 13-acre garden of peace and healing dedicated to the 40 heroes of Flight 93. The garden is located at 6488 Lincoln Highway, 1/4-mile from the entrance to the Flight 93 National Memorial.
Diane Ginter, president of the Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Foundation, is leading the effort to build this memorial to honor all Pennsylvania firefighters who, like her husband Philip “Craig” Ginter, dedicated themselves to the fire service and died while serving their community.
Craig Ginter died in 2021, succumbing to a medical emergency while he worked at a farm fire with the Beavertown Rescue Hose Company. Coincidentally, the groundbreaking was held on the date of Craig Ginter’s 63rd birthday.
Accompanying Diane Ginter at the groundbreaking were Somerset County’s state legislators Pat Stefano and Carl Walker Metzgar, Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Tom Cook, Somerset Regional Fire Department Chief Jim Clark, Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department Chief Chris Meyer, Stoystown Volunteer Fire Department Chief Dave “J.J.” Johnson and Clay Mankamyer, Remember Me Rose Garden chairman emeritus.
“This is the first step in making the memorial a reality, and every generosity will help to permanently honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifice,” Ginter said at the ceremony, standing in front of a large American flag hoisted by the ladder of Somerset Regional Volunteer Fire Department’s aerial truck.
Why Somerset County was chosen
Ginter said the Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Memorial is a “grass roots effort” that started in 2025 when she learned that Pennsylvania, the first state in the United States of America to start a fire department (in 1736 by Benjamin Franklin), did not have a state fallen firefighters memorial.
“They (fallen firefighters) were committed to their communities and never hesitated, even until they gave their last breath. Each year, firefighters in Pennsylvania die in the line of duty. Our mission is to bring those individuals home to the Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Memorial, here in Somerset,” she said.
Choosing Somerset County and the Remember Me Rose Garden for the Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Memorial made sense, Ginter said, as the site offers a “serene, quiet and safe place” where people come to honor the 40 heroes of Flight 93 for their bravery and will now include those in the fire service who risked their lives for their communities.
Ginter contacted her state representative, David Rowe, who arranged for her to meet with state Rep. Carl Walker Metzgar of Somerset County, who connected her to the board members of the Remember Me Rose Garden.
“It’s been her, she’s the ‘push’ behind this,” Metzgar said of Ginter’s work to create the state memorial, adding that nationally historic events like Sept. 11, 2001, and the Quecreek Mine Rescue in 2002 has shown the rest of the nation that Somerset County is made up of “men and women of action.”
“What better place to put the memorial for our firemen who have lost their lives, being men and women of action, than in Somerset County,” he said. “So it’s with open arms that I invite them into our home, America’s home, Somerset County.”
‘More than turning soil’
The completed memorial will list the names of 800 Pennsylvania firefighters who have died while on duty and those who will unfortunately be added to the list in the future, which is about eight to 10 firefighters each year, Ginter said.
“This is hallowed ground where families can gather and pay their respects to those souls that they knew, and those of their brothers and sisters that made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty,” she said.
“It is only fitting that we’re able to join hands and add to this memorial in a very humbling and spectacular way. These firefighters deserve to be honored and remembered. They should never be forgotten.”
Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Tom Cook said Somerset County is a “perfect” location to build the Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Memorial.
“This community already holds spaces of deep national significance, including the Post 9-11 U.S. Armed forces Memorial at Patriot Park and, of course, the Flight 93 National Memorial. Each of these sites honors extraordinary courage and sacrifice, and now, with this groundbreaking, Stoystown becomes home to a place that recognizes the bravery of Pennsylvania’s firefighters who gave their lives in service,” he said.
“It is fitting that this memorial will stand among others that remind us of resilience, unity and the indominable spirit of those who protect our communities. Firefighters are part of a brotherhood and sisterhood built on trust, sacrifice and an unwavering commitment to one another. They run towards danger when others run away. They protect our communities without hesitation, often without recognition, but always with courage. When we lose one of them, we lose a piece of our community, a part of our family. Their commitment and sacrifice, whether sown in a single act of bravery or through a lifetime of service, deserves to be honored in a way that stands the test of time.
“Breaking ground today is more than turning soil; it’s acknowledging loss, honoring service and making a promise: We will always remember. As we move forward with construction let us remember that this memorial is not only for those we have lost, but also for the loved ones who carry their memory … families who carry both pride and sorrow in that loss.”
Donations for the construction of the memorial can be made at the Pennsylvania Fallen Firefighters Foundation website, pennsylvaniafff.com.
