like one now. without blink his eye, tony began to tell a story about shark attacks in northern california. now, vince was quite the opposite. vince had the unique ability to not listen to a story and all the altar boys from station 7 -- it was like a reunion of all the guys that work together in the '90s. in fact, one altar boy discovered this trait of vince's where he would talk to vince, and he would say is that right? and he would give this little nervous laugh and this would go on and on throughout the conversation. and finally after years of doing this, someone turned to him and said vince, you haven't heard a word i have said, have you. vince said no, brother, sorry, you guys just aren't that interesting. [ laughter ] >> to this day, uh-huh is that right is the key to station 7 to shut up, you're boring the hell out of us. we can also talk about them

professionally. vince was the fireman's fireman. he was big. he was strong. he was aggressive. and he was one of the best. he was always the first one in the door and he was always the guy to grab the nozzle. and through the with the fire, vince was the guy that was going to -- if there was a fire, vince was the guy that was going to put it out. he was the fireman that most of us looked up to at station 7. i can remember a fire on lexington street way, way back in the '90s. it was one of those rare occasions when vince was forced to drive the fire engine. most of us in this room hate driving a fire engine because you are outside operating the pump handle and you're not having all the fun putting out the fire, and vince was one of those firefighters, but after this particular fire, his crew got into trouble. they had fire in front of them and fire below them, and vince looked for a water suply. he ran an entire city block dragging ladies and gentlemen of the jury line to -- saved the lives of those men in the fire. he laughed about it and

shrugged it off, never being one to take credit. but he should have taken credit that night because he saved the lives of all three men who were on his engine company. and that was the kind of guy that vince was. now, tony, he came to the department a different way. tony was a free spirited medic with the department of public health who eventually became a firefighter. he was a pony-tailed hippy who called himself the people's paramedic. he had a big heart. and he loved to help the sick and disabled, downtrodden. he was like mother teresa with a siren. [ laughter ] his capacity for caring was unmatched. he was fun to be on calls with and would always lighten the mood not just with the firefighters but also with the patients. and in fact one of his canned lines to elderly women when he was helping them up, he would say hug me like you're my husband. and after he put them down, he would tell them i don't think you really love your husband

that much. i didn't feel it. to say that vince and tony were very different people would be an under statement. vince was a former marine. tony was a world-traveling hippy. vince worked on classic cars and hot rods. tony was an urban chicken farmer. vince had an amazing economy of words and tony had an inability to put a period on the the end of a sentence. vince loved to work out. and tony loved yoga. i think the immortal words of st. francis summed them up the best "nothing is so strong as gentleness and nothing is so gentle as real strength. "vincent and tony were our gentleness and our strength. together, gentleness and strength stood on that fateful day that brought us together here for this service. together, gentleness and

strength went into harm's way and together, gentleness and strength have left us. vincent and tony were two men who had every gift but length of years. vincent and tony were two men who dedicated their lives to serving others and vain spent tony were two men who were role models, not just in how they died, but most importantly in how they lived. let us all strive to get the perez and valerio family strength in the days ahead to overcome their grief. and to vince perez and tony valerio who gave their lives in the service to others, the san francisco firefighters and the 300,000 other brothers and sisters. we say thank you for the gift of your lives. may you rest in peace. i now ask general president herald shafer to please present the iff line of duty metal to the perez and valerio families. please take this as just a

small token of the love and respect we had for these brave men. our hearts are broken that they are gone, but we are truly blessed to have had them in our lives and we will never forget them. thank you. [ applause ] >> my next speaker is chief joanne hays white of the san francisco fire department, and no one could have given more support to the valerio and the perez family that she did and has in these past days.

>> good afternoon to the perez and valerio family and friends, archbishop, bishop justice, our beloved department chaplain, the reverend john green. reverend heely and hamilton. elected leaders, dignitaries and colleagues and to the men and women of the san francisco fire department and all others in uniform. ination to all others, gathered here today, to mourn the loss of lieutenant vincent perez and firefighter paramedic anthony valerio. none of us can forget what happened last thursday, june 2nd, 2011. it's 10:45 a.m. 8155 came in. we all know the outcome. if i had the ability to change

the outcome, i would have done it in a heartbeat, but unfortunately, that is not the case. there are no words that can describe the pain, anger and sorrow that we're feeling. and nor were there words to describe the sacrifice made by vincent tony. mrs. frank and mrs. valerio, sisters jack i can, donna, marina and laura, brothers mark and kevin, and to our san francisco fire department family. we have lost two sons, two brothers, uncles, cousins, friends, and public servants. vince and tony gave their lives in a pursuit of saving lives. their death reminds each and every one of us with the inherent risk associated with being a firefighter.

most of us in uniform place our emphasis and focus on protecting and serving others. we try to downplay the risks to our friends and families and sometimes we try and downplay it even to ourselves. we stand here today in the city of st. francis to mourn the loss, but also to celebrate the lives of lieutenant vincent perez and firefighter paramedic anthony valerio. today we stand hand in hand with our brother and sister agencies from across the bay area, the state, and the nation to remember our brothers and acknowledge their sacrifice. today we stand here from every corner of our community and beyond, uniform and civilian, to mourn this great loss. i personally am so very grateful for the outcome of kindness and support shown to

the fire department and to the perez and valerio families during this difficult time. your care and concern mean so much. you're conveying to us that our loss is your loss, as we honor and celebrate the lives of vince and tony, two heroes. vince and i entered the san francisco fire department recruit academy together on april 2nd, 1990. we were proud members of the 78th recruit academy. we were both anxious and excited about our new careers. we except in touch with one another, down through the years, and we had run into each other periodically. i always had great respect for vince. he was a true gentlemen and also served his country as a former marine. we would often joke with one another, both being natives of san francisco. he would joke about me being a mercy girl and i would talk about him -- i'll never forget what i -- when i became chief a few years back and i received a call from vince.

he called to congratulate me, and he said hey, pretty, good job. now i have a friend in a high place. don't forget about me. vince was also a fine officer. well-respected and loved by his crew. he loved working for the san francisco fire department. vince worked at engines 22, 34, and 7. but truly found a home working as lieutenant in diamond heights at station 26. tony and i met in the early '90s on a medical call in the mission district. he was working as a paramedic at the department of public health at the time. i vividly remember tony because he was able to defuse a situation that had the potential to become very volatile and very challenging. i immediately was drawn to tony's street-wise ability to deal with almost any situation. he was a brilliant medic, responsible for personally saving hundreds of lives, in his career with his advanced life support skills.

tony also had a way with his patience and coworkers that would appeal to everyone. tony was calm, layed back, funny, inquisitive, and optimistic, and he absolutely loved life. he treated everyone with kindness and respect. when the paramedics division of the department of public health americaned into the san francisco fire department in 1997, tony became one of our members, and what a gift it was for all of us. tony crosstrained to become a firefighter paramedic and was a proud member of the second h3 firefighter paramedic recruit class. tony worked at a variety of stations making friends, every step of the way. but most of the time, he spent at stations 18 and 34 on the avenue, probably because he liked to surf so much, and most recently he found a home at station 26. the san francisco fire department is comprised by a by

verse group of men and women, one of the things that makes me most proud of our department. we are a patchwork of individuals who come together every day with the same goal of protecting lives and properties. our difference is are what makes our team stronger? on the outside, vince and tony teemed -- seemed pretty different. vince was more reserved and serious at least until you really got to know him. tony more outgoing and humorous. but both vince and tony shared an unrelenting at the massty and an unwillingness to give up on things in which they believed. they were dedicated public servants who shared a common goal and who ultimately sacrificed themselves for others. no measure of word will ever capture the denth of our gratitude to vince and tony nor ease the grief that we all share. but though it is certainly easier said than done, we must move forward. for it is in carrying on our faithful service that we can truly honor the lives of vince

and tony. it is in every call and every response that we carry their memory and keep it alive. and we can honor them. so winston churchill said we make a living by what we get. we make a life by what we give. vince and tony gave it all, and for that we will be eternally grateful. this is the 4th time in the last two decades that we have come together in this beautiful coo three driver's license to pay tribute to fallen members of the san francisco fire department. we will not forget the sacrifice that vince and tony made for us just as we have not forgotten the sacrifice of lieu tense innocent -- lieutenants and firefighter and the others who came before them. last week, we have had a allot to deal with. and i believe i'm speaking on behalf of the perez and valerio families, there's many people to thank. first and fore most, our department chaplain who has

been with us. our conspiracytial leader. fatherlieutenant green, thank you for everything that you do and continue to do for our families. >> our elected leaders in the city and the state and in our nation. we so much appreciate you being here today. it shows us that you care for our department and for our members and that you're helping them heal with our loss. from my city colleagues, the other department heads, i can't tell you how much i respect and appreciate your reaching out to me personally in the last week. it means a lot. there are many of you that i have not gotten back to, but i will and i really, really feel like the city is a family, particularly this week. the sack francisco police department, under the direction of chief greg sir, to our partners and public safety as i like to say, thank you so much

for everything you have done. from getting us to the hospital from diamond heights that day on thursday as quickly as we could get there -- i can't say enough about how wonderful your department has been. thank you very much. [ applause ] similarly to our share of michael henesee and to his wonderful staff, you were with us every step of the way when we were at san francisco general and for that we are forever grateful. from the department of public health, our director, barbara garcia, i would like to personally acknowledge you in conjunction with the amazing staff at san francisco general hospital. i know today we have you sitting with us because you are definitely a part of our family and that is the ceo of general hospital sue curren and doctor andre campbell who is is the trauma surgeon. as well as three nursing supervisors that were so

helpful during a difficult time last week. terry and tony, and patio conner thank you have the bottom of our hearts. i personally witnessed all of you doing the best you could fighting valiantly to save tony and vincent's life and we're truly grateful for that. i could ask for everyone to applaud for the san francisco general hospital. [ applause ] [ applause ] to our san francisco fire commissioners, you have been a source of support to all of us. and we're at the hospital with this, constant calls and checking in. you are also part of our family, and you mean so much to us. i would like to introduce our current fire commission under the leadership of president andrea evans, vice president george lowe, commissioner michael hard man.

thank you very much. [ applause ] we're also joined by a few rows, several of our former fire commissioners that are here to celebrate vince and tony and to honor their memory. thank you so much. in addition, we have a number -- i believe we have all of our former chiefs of department here, chief robert simmons, chief ed -- >> thank you for being with us today. [ applause ] stop our brothers and sisters in the fire service that have joined us in our loss, and to honor vince and tony, it means so much that you're here at the service today. i understand we have people throughout our nation in addition to canada and mexico. i can't tell you how much that means to our members and i personally wanted to acknowledge each and every one

of you, similarly we have done something different. we have never done it before. when we lost two members i felt itwas important to have anyone working today on duty to be able to come honor vince and tony today. in order to do so, my focus today is on vince and tony, but my role is obviously to continue to protect our city. we could not have done that without assistance from our bay area fire departments through mutual aide, and i would like to acknowledge those people that would like to be here today but instead are staffing our station so that our members could be here. we have got a plan together very quickly this week and am proud to say that we have brothers and sisters working from alameda, santa clara and napa counties. approximately 150 members have come into our city to protect our city so that we could properly honor vince and tony. i would like to acknowledge that the california state fire

marshall is here, tonya hoover from kel ima as well as two assistant chiefs that were instrumental in putting this together logistically today and that is john clearly. >> this was not an easy task and you can imagine our hearts are with vince and tony so we had a group from the management team come in and help us together from alameda and contra costa counties. this was all done under the direction of chief gilbert. thank you. [ applause ] another group that i would like to acknowledge, and i am very proud to be working with is the leadership of local 798. tom other conner. we have worked hand and glove

this week and i really appreciate all your support and members of the executive board for everything you have done. we couldn't have done it without you and truly it was a partnership. i appreciate you being here as well as representation from the international association of fire chiefs. thank you so much. [ applause ] and to my colleagues in the san francisco fire compartment, i put a little something out yesterday, but i am truly inspired in giving strength by how well all of us have worked together and the manner in which we're supporting one another and i hope in the coming days we can continue to do that for one another as well as for the perez and valerio family. and i would also like to pay particular credit to our board of supervisors, each and every one of you, all 11 of you, during the week and last week when we were suffering from this tragedy, reached out to me whether it was physically joining us at terrance's go

general, and phonecalls and text messages. it means a lot, and i can say that is a city that truly is a family. you have the executive branch of government and the legislative branch of government all gathering around and supporting our firefighters and it means a lot to us. thank you. [ applause ] the last person that i wanted to acknowledge is someone that is seated right next to me. i wouldn't have is had it any other way today, and that is our mayor. mayor ed lee. [ applause ] mayor lee, on behalf of the men and women of the san francisco fire department, we are forever grateful for your support, care, and concern for all of us, particularly the valerio families and vince and tony. you were with us last week on thursday, a very difficult day. you have spent at least five hours with us in the emergency room at san francisco general

hospital. you checked in with me friday. we were both hoping for better news about tony. and then about 6:30 or 7:00 in the morning you joined me and the valerio family at tony's bedside when dr. campbell who had done everything he possibly could. unfortunately, had to pronounce tony deceased as well. thank you so much for being here for all of us. [ applause ] my heart truly goes out to you. as a parent myself, i can only imagine what you must be feeling. i hope it's a consolation that your son died doing what they believed in and what they loved doing. thank you for the gift of your son and your support of their career choice. and the san francisco fire department will always be here for you and we will endeavor to see you through this very difficult time. i would now like to offer a special message to the perez

family. please excuse my imperfect spanish. mucho. map

i would like to conclude my remarks with a prayer from st. francis. grant that i may not speak so much to be consoled as you console. to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love with all my soul. and for it is in giving that we receive, in pardoning that we are pardoned, and in dying that we are born to eternal life. amen. i mourn the loss of my colleagues, but also my friends. it was an honor to know you both, vince and tony, and

ironically, it was an honor meeting you. i'm very sorry for the circumstances. vince and tony, thank you for all that you gave to the san francisco fire department and to the community that we serve. we will all carry on together and keep you both forever in our hearts and minds. vince and tony, may god bless you and may you both rest in peace. [ applause ] we turn now from our firefighter memories to our family members, and mark valerio will be our first speaker today.

hello, everybody. first off, i would like to thank everybody that came today to help say good-bye to my brother. thank you to firefighters, friends and families who have been so kind and those who have given us our support and kindness in our time of grief. no one wants to love lose a loved one but you help make it easier and thank you all for that. when tony was younger, he had interest in a lot of things. we used to make our own kites, hot air balloons and made model rockets. we would hike and spend our summers walking or just walking anywhere, and maybe swimming in the local pond at the golf course orth athe lanes where we really weren't supposed to be if the first place but we had just had to make sure we ducked. and i remember when tony was

telling me that he wanted to be an emt in oakland, and i thought, you know, you went to school for, you know, to be a marine biologist, you know, where did that come from? i thought -- >> i never thought that being an emt or a paramedic could be all that dangerous, but when he was in oakland, he came home one day, and he showed me this little 9 mm that he had, and i'm like why do you have a gun? he said well, in oakland, sometimes if we look like police in our uniforms, people drop flower pots, tvs or whatever day can get their hands on on us. it's pretty crazy. after a while, he worked as a paramedic in san francisco, and i thought, you know, that couldn't be too dangerous, but i found out that's also pretty bad, but he seemed to be okay with but. he would tell us some stories but always kept the bad stuff away from us. the fire station seemed to be tony's second home. he didn't really have a working

shower. he had a toilet but no working shower so he would go there and shave and bathe and do whatever he needed to do, do his laundry. and sometimes just hang out. and i would call him up, you know, and say what are you doing? how are you doing? and i thought it was your day off. well, i'm just hanging out at the fire department. th tony was one of the nicest people you meet. i think the qualities that tony had is patients. my dad is very friendly to everybody. i think most of our family got that from our dad. my mom is very, very patient. and i guess she had to be. there were 7 of us kiddings and i'm sure we were a handful. a lot of times when we were younger, he would be talking to people, and i was like how do you know these people?

i would be embarrassed but i learned to roll with it. on mother's day, we were at a pizza shack and there was a waitress there that had band- aids and we were like why are you wearing these band-aids? are you hiding tattoos and she said yeah, how did you know? i saw a little pink out from underneath one of your band- aids. i guess they weren't allowed to have, you know, their tattoos showing. they noticed the grease on the ceiling. and some of the hobbies that tony had when he was older. he had archery, scuba diving.