Firefighters help family of fallen comrade

Mountain Home firefighters replace porch for Dennis Terhaar's family.

Firefighter Dennis Terhaar, who died two weeks ago of a sudden heart attack at the age of 46, had planned to put a new porch on his family's house.

Last week, his fellow firemen did the job for him.

"I talk about how proud I am of my guys," said Fire Chief Phil Gridley, "but this project brings even more pride. They wanted to help a fallen firefighter. This shows how close knit a family we are."

Terhaar already had had the lumber delivered to his house to replace the porch when he died. Last week, almost every member of the department showed up to finish the job.

They tore the old porch off completely, replaced some studs, and then finished the project, all except the painting, which Terhaar's widow wanted to do herself.

Like an old-fashioned barn raising, the large amount of manpower meant the job went swiftly. The firemen finished the project in approximately three hours. Then they went on to do some basic yard maintenance around the Terhaar home.

It was just one more way to pay tribute to one of their own, and to let the Terhaar family know he will never be forgotten.