I hope you don’t mind that I began this tribute editorial to Tom Brennan here on his page. I know you read this magazine from the back to the front. Tom always knew. This is where he has been doing Random Thoughts. He never bragged about it, though. He never really mentioned it, but he knew we all started reading each issue by turning to Random Thoughts first. We could guess that Fire Engineering is the only magazine in America read routinely from the back to the front, because that was where Brennan was.
The cover and this month’s Random Thoughts are about our good and loyal friend Tom Brennan. Tom was taken from us on April 20 by cancer. Tom fought as courageously as he lived and never really let on just how much pain he was in. It seems fitting and proper that we say a last farewell to Tom on his page. Tom would have wanted it this way. But just so you know, I asked Janet Brennan, Tom’s wife, and she said Tom would be honored that I am writing this. I hope so.
I want to talk about Tommy Brennan, the man. Tommy had an Irish warrior’s heart and a Gaelic poet’s soul. Tommy could light up a room with his smile, take your pain away with his laughter, and leave everything and everyone he ever touched better for it. Tommy Truck, Captain Brennan, Chief Brennan, Editor in Chief Brennan, Dad, Boss, Lieu, Brother, neighbor, friend, author, teacher, speaker, Random Thoughts guy, Tom, Irish comedian … it really didn’t matter how you knew him. You will never forget him. If you never had the pleasure of meeting Tom Brennan, keep reading, for this man changed your profession. And he did it for you.
Tommy never spoke much about his dad, the most decorated FDNY firefighter of his day, or his grandfather, who was killed on the job for FDNY in 1920. It wasn’t his way. He never spoke much about his 20 years with FDNY or his time in the Waterbury (CT) Fire Department. Tom never reminded anyone that he was editor of Fire Engineering for eight years and a technical editor for 16 more. Tommy didn’t complain about his aching knees, his tortured back, his open heart surgery, or his cancer. He never wanted your sympathy. He only wanted your friendship. He never wanted your money. He couldn’t care less. He wanted your attention. He never wanted your praise. He wanted you to be safe.
Tommy never talked much about Tommy. He was more interested in you. When his eyes met yours, he was completely focused on you. Tom would start every conversation with “You got time for this?” This meant, if you couldn’t pay full attention, he’d get back to you. Tom didn’t waste your time or his; he lived every day, every hour of his life with gusto. Tom’s wit and insight were forged in the streets of New York and in countless hours of intense serious study. Many would never recognize Tom Brennan the scholar, but make no mistake about it-he was as educated and as well read as any college professor. His education went well beyond firefighting, although that was his number one passion. And for all his kidding, he revered his friends the enginemen. “Without youze,” he said, “the truck would have to do all the work.”
Tom Brennan was to many the finest editor this publication has ever had. He had a very clear vision, which he shared, so we will never lose our way here at Fire Engineering. Tom told us the magazine’s mission was “to help firefighters cope with the tremendous decisions confronting them as they battle our national disease-fire; to bring the experiences, decisions, results, and lessons of our firefighters and officers throughout the country to the fore; to lay these lessons before our interested and aware firefighters so that they may benefit from this shared knowledge ….” Tom could not be clearer about what he wants us to do here, and we pledge to follow his mandate. Tom expects you to support his memory by keeping this vehicle, Fire Engineering, pure and true. Keep these pages yours as a place to provide a platform where we can share, discuss, and exchange those lessons Tommy was talking about. Keep fighting that disease-fire. Tom told me over and over to allow all opinions space, not just the ones I agree with; to keep my eyes open and my ears open; to leave my ego at home; and to treat every brother and sister as just that-a brother and a sister.
Tom wanted to meet the expectations of those who founded this publication in 1877. Tom knew what was important for firefighters 20 years before others started discovering it. Tom shared his vision with his readers every month. Tom had his favorite types of firefighters he called the “interested and aware.” Tom wrote every month so he could keep those interests alive in us and make us aware of things we may have forgotten or missed. Tom had wanted to publish Random Thoughts as a book, and that project is in the works. Random Thoughts (the book) will be the “thinking firefighter’s” desk reference when faced with a tactical puzzle.
Tommy tutored me, and he insisted I find education beyond the fire service and bring it home to the firehouse to make the firehouse better. We would share thoughts about everything. Just a few weeks ago, I told Tommy about a story I read in Joel Osteen’s book Your Best Life Now. Pastor Osteen told of an unfortunate railroad worker whose job was to check the cars at night so no one vandalized or stole anything from them. On this particular night, he stepped into a refrigerated car to check on something, and the door unexpectedly closed behind him, trapping him inside. He knew he would not last long in a refrigerated car, so he wrote his family a goodbye note and struggled to stay alive. The oncoming shift discovered him, frozen dead, the next morning along with his note describing his remorse and how he was having difficulty writing in the extreme cold. The odd thing was, the refrigerated car was not operating-there was no refrigeration. That night it was cold, but not cold enough to kill you. The rail worker’s problem was that he believed he would freeze to death, and his belief killed him.
Tommy related to that story. He said it reminded him of all the people who said “You can’t do this” or “You can’t do that.” “Can’t do it? Why not? Because they say so? Not good enough.” Tommy said some things were repeated so often that people started believing them, when nothing could be further from the truth. For example, throughout the history of the fire service, people have said that we will never be united. Tommy called them lightweights. Tommy reminded me that he and his friend Alan Brunacini never cared what “they” said. “They” say the unions will never sit with the chiefs and volunteers can never get along with career. “Rubbish. Pure rubbish.” Tommy would say that “they” are afraid because we are uniting and we are talking and we do care for, support, and respect one another.
Tommy said it is the great who challenge themselves-and us, and everyone else they meet-to be better, to be more. Tommy reminded me that “they-that indiscernible group of “they,” they who are never remembered-told Henry Ford, “You cannot manufacture a hundred cars in one day. You cannot.” Henry Ford said, “You are right. I can manufacture 200 or 300.”
Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right.” Tommy Brennan taught me-he taught us-we can. Tommy believed that with good training, an American fire department could be one of the most dynamic forces in the universe. He knew that no matter who you were and no matter where you worked, your experience had value to the rest of us. To Tom it came down to your willingness to share.
Tommy taught us that only you are responsible for where and what you are-not the guy next to you, not your boss or your wife. You are responsible. Not too many people can say they were true to their word until the day they died. Tom can. Tom said, “Training is and must be an ongoing concept from day one until day last.” I spoke to Tom, and he was still training me on Easter Sunday. He died the following Thursday. He kept training me until he could speak no more. He was that serious about what we do.
Tommy loved his family-his beautiful wife Janet; his kids Theresa, Eileen, Tom, and Brian; and his grandkids Morgan, Thomas, and Matthew. Thank you, Janet, for sharing Tommy with the rest of us. Thanks for all the days away while he shared what he knew, while he gave us his wisdom and his focus. Thanks for letting us share your Tom.
Tom was a good provider and a loving dad. In a greater sense he was a good provider to his second family-the fire service. Tommy loved firefighters and the fire service, Fire Engineering, and FDIC. The crew at Fire Engineering was his crew. He never left the magazine. His hand has been at the tiller, steering the ship, since 1983. Tommy was our inspiration. He always told it like it was; he was no one’s fool and no one’s puppet. Tommy stood up to those who suggested we trade off staffing for so-called alternatives and technology. He never let us forget that firefighting at its most basic levels is hand-to-hand combat with a ruthless and unforgiving adversary.
Tom always insisted the magazine put a priority on safety, working safety. Today many uninformed confuse safety with not fighting the fire. Tom would say safety was ensuring that enough staffing and training be provided so you are capable of making the building behave, that the companies-the truck, engine, and squad activities-can simultaneously and synergistically accomplish their missions. That is safety, not RIT, not safety officers, not two in/two out, not command systems, but well-trained, well-staffed, well-led companies working as one. Attacking the fire with thinking firefighters who honor themselves and their profession by always being ready, always being the best, and always training and challenging themselves-that was Brennan-based safety.
Tommy found Fire Engineering when it was struggling, and he breathed life into it. Tom set a fresh direction. He recognized that training and only training could make a group of firefighters a good fire company. Tom wanted Fire Engineering to be a book he would pick up and read. The fire service responded, and the rest is history. Tom hired an excellent staff, developed terrific relationships, and set firefighters free to write about what they knew best-the work. After he left, he was still the one who set the course, who kept this magazine straight and true; no one else can make that claim. No one else had the vision, the experience, or the understanding of the need for serious training for serious firefighters. He brought this magazine back, and he never let go.
Tommy carried Fire Engineering like a new dad carries his first-born. He loved sharing every month his wisdom and his passion. His editorials were classic Brennan-he wrote firefighter to firefighter, insider stuff, no bull. Later his column was focused on firefighter safety and survival; he understood that it was more important to train us to stay out of bad situations than to survive them.
Tommy didn’t suffer fools lightly; he had an incredible ability to judge a person. Tommy would always say he might not know what a guy knows but he could tell you in 10 minutes if the guy knew what he said he knew. Tommy knew instinctively if something had value or not. He was versed in every aspect of our business, but he left command to his good friend Alan Brunacini. The times I spent sitting between him and Alan during “Brennan and Bruno Unplugged” at FDIC were priceless. I remember Tommy asking Alan one time: “Do you really believe that stuff?” When Alan answered yes, Tommy just laughed and said, “I thought you were just saying that to piss me off.”
Many people never understood Brennan and Bruno. They thought that when they disagreed they disliked and disrespected one another. The opposite was true. The whole “east vs. west” was so over the top. Alan said it was really just old and old. No, it was brilliant and fascinating. It was educational and entertaining. It was Brennan and Bruno. Tom and Alan respected and loved one another. Tom and Alan spent time together and were guests in one another’s homes. They loved each other and were talking about writing a book together, The Principles of Tactics. That idea came from a marathon tactics and simulation session one evening in the Phoenix Command Training Center. Tom was going to visit only for a couple of minutes; six hours later, the discussion was still going on, and no one had moved. Tom and Alan had 10 of America’s most respected instructors and chiefs spellbound. Tom remarked later he really enjoyed that night. Alan said it was good. The rest of us said we had never seen or heard anything as insightful and as clear before in our lives.
Tommy thought like Henry Ford. Tommy didn’t care if your idea was perfect. He cared because you had an idea. Tommy believed every solution was good somewhere, that most solutions needed local stuff. He would say, “Hell, try something. Stand up and try something. The worst failures are the comfortable ones. Only lightweights keep doing only what they are good at.” If you had an idea and told Tom, he would think it over and give you an honest opinion. He would always check to make sure you were ready to hear it first. He would say, “Now you really want to know what I think?” Whether you were ready or not, you got Tom’s honest opinion.
Tom Brennan believed today we are better represented, better trained, and better led than any other generation of firefighters. Tom’s life work is a big part of why this is so. His dedication to training seeded this growing sense of unity that we are seeing. Tom recognized the American firefighter today is not a kid from Philly, a surfer from Diego, a cowboy from Phoenix, or a Seattle boy. The firefighter of today is an American firefighter, and we know it. Our allegiance is not only to our towns, our cities, and our neighborhoods. It is to this country. Tommy served America in the Navy; Tommy served her in New York and Waterbury and everywhere he spoke, taught, and visited.
Tommy told me Americans expect America’s firefighters to be men and women who are ready, willing, and capable of going anywhere, facing any threat, and achieving any objective-men and women like you who proved it in Northridge, in Oklahoma City, at the Twin Towers, and during Katrina and Rita. And you will be called on again this year. You will be tested, you will find talents you didn’t know you had, strengths you never imagined, and you will perform feats others would consider impossible-but not to Tommy. He expects you to make him proud.
Some people would ask, what have we seen that makes us so sure of our bright and shining future? Some people ask, where are the next batch of leaders? Our future is seen in our union leaders helping fire chiefs, working together to hold on to our precious grants. It is in men like Curt Weldon, who has fought for us, almost singlehandedly, in Congress and long before it was fashionable to do so. Men like Dave Paulison, taking on the most difficult job in the world, smiling because he knows he has an army of 1.2 million brothers and sisters who will never let him down. Men and women like you, the readers of Fire Engineering. The readers of Tom Brennan’s Random Thoughts are teachers, maybe not in classrooms, but they are in firehouses and on runs. Tom always said trainers are leaders. Only those who are willing to teach can lead.
Tommy understood “our magazine” is not for lightweights, not for the casual firefighter, not for the halfhearted. People like you who read the magazine are serious about what we do. Tom reminded us every day our job was to do our best for you.
Tom was proud of the magazine, FDNY, Waterbury, and his family. But his pride was not an arrogant pride or a boastful pride; it was a loving and respectful pride, the type of pride a mother feels when a teacher notes her son is courteous and attentive. The type of pride a parent feels when a child does the right thing when no one is looking.
Tommy knew the future of the American fire service was going to continue to be glorious and full of fantastic opportunities for those who don’t see the cold of a refrigerated box car but rather a chance for a quiet evening alone with their thoughts. Those who would refuse to accept freezing as their fate but rather resourcefully discover a way to survive. Tommy loved the fact that “aware” firefighters will always be the best the world has to offer because “thinking” firefighters will never let you quit. Firefighters will never let you be comfortable. Like Tommy, they will push you to be better, to be more, to stand up and do something.
We need to be more like our friend Tommy. We need to push our friends to challenge themselves every day, to look outside and inside to be better people and better firefighters. I won’t lie to you. Tommy pushed me into this job. I didn’t seek it. I was intimidated by the responsibility, the time, the travel. I didn’t think I was up to the demands of the job. But Tommy thought I could build 100 cars in one day. I will always be Tom’s guy at Fire Engineering; that’s a really proud title.
Tommy loved Fire Engineering. He thought you would enjoy having a firefighter’s voice again in its pages. As I promised Tommy, when you need a voice, I will protect, defend, and support you. I swore to Tommy, and I swear to you, I will never let anyone disrespect good firefighters on my watch. Tommy would expect nothing less from me.
Tommy loved this business. In his heart and in his mind, every firefighter was his friend. He never had a bad word to say about a good firefighter. He truly loved you all. I had hoped to make FDIC 2006 the best ever for Tom; I thought he had more time. It seems that time is all we have, really, so if you spent time with Tom, you are richer for it. If you spend time trying to make a difference, you will be better for it. If you need to mend a fence with someone, please go do it. If you need to say you’re sorry, don’t put it off. Do it for Tom.
Tom is now and always will be your friend, your brother. Goodbye, Tommy. We love you. I love you. Thank you for everything. God speed our brother home and watch over his family. And God, thanks for giving us 66 years of Tom Brennan. Thanks, God. We loved every minute of him.
