GREELEY — Volunteer Fire Capt. Shane Stewart was remembered in Greeley on Thursday as a fellow with an impish grin, a mischievous streak and a kind-hearted father of two who went out of his way to help others.
Between laughter at some of his practical jokes and a large-screen picture of Stewart in drag, there were heartfelt words of condolence and loss.
“He will be deeply missed by everyone who knew and loved him,” said Scott Wagner, the chief of the Ault-Pierce Fire Protection District.
“I felt honored when we moved into the new station, and he asked to have the locker next to mine.”
Stewart, 33, was killed early Saturday when the 1995 pumper engine he was driving ran off the road as he answered an Ault medical call.
More than 300 fire and rescue first-responders paid tribute to Stewart, an Ault-Pierce Fire Protection District volunteer and Pierce station captain.
The service was held in Greeley’s Union Colony Civic Center. Outside were firetrucks and ambulances from more than 40 jurisdictions.
Two hook and ladder trucks — one from Colorado Springs and the other from Edgewater — extended their ladders over the street, a giant American flag hanging from the ladders and blowing in the gentle breeze.
Shane Stewart’s grin was a personal trademark — a “permanent fixture” that rarely left him, said the Rev. Erik Karas.
But Karas said the overwhelming personal characteristic of Stewart was his devotion to being a firefighter and helping others.
“He loved being a fireman,” Karas said. “He hungered for more and more training and more and more knowledge so he could serve people.”
“He changed life and made a difference. Shane’s life did nothing but change the world,” he said.
Wagner, chief of the Ault-Pierce Fire Protection District, said Stewart loved to talk to people and loved to eat — raiding refrigerators for hard-boiled eggs, string cheese, just about anything. One thing Stewart didn’t like was the “countdown” when the fire department was responding to an emergency.
Wagner said he would yell out the miles to the scene — three miles, two miles and one mile. As he yelled “three,” Stewart would grunt; when he yelled “two,” Stewart would let loose with some expletives; and at one mile, Stewart would yell “Shut Up!”
“He didn’t like the countdown. It made him very nervous,” Wagner said.
Throughout the service, everyone’s thoughts were with Stewart’s family — his wife, Cyndee, and sons Blake, 9, and Logan, 7, and his parents, Paul and Jeanette, and brother Sean.
After the service, the flag-draped casket was carried to Ault/Pierce Fire Protection District Engine No. 6 as dozens of firefighters lined the sidewalk.
There, the casket was carefully lifted to the top of the truck.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
