got this from another rant board........
His grandfather was a fireman in Northport. And his father is the chief of the Northport Fire Department.
So there was little doubt that Charles J. Varese would be a volunteer firefighter in the department where his family roots went deep. His brother, Willie, after all, also is a volunteer. And his mother, Lorri, is an emergency medical technician, critical care specialist, with the ambulance corps.
The same ambulance corps, by the way, that helped her deliver Charles in their ambulance en route to the hospital more than two decades ago.
All of which is why friends remained in stunned disbelief Wednesday in Northport, the day after Charles Varese, 24, was hit and killed by an alleged drug-impaired driver while riding his motorcycle on Route 25 A in Centerport.
Suffolk County Police said Varese was killed when his 2004 Yamaha was struck by a 2004 Nissan driven by Jason R. Curry, 33, of Stony Brook, at 7:12 a.m. Tuesday. Police said Curry, who was arrested for driving while ability impaired by drugs, drifted over the double yellow center line -- and crashed head-on into Varese.
"The whole department has really rallied around the family," Northport Fire Department spokesman Jim Mahoney said Wednesday. "But it's not easy . . . We lost a very enthusiastic, valuable member here. An enthusiastic, good-hearted kid."
In honor of Varese, buntings have been placed outside the firehouse on Main Street and the station on Waterside Road, Mahoney said. Flags are at half-staff, as they are on Village Hall and in the village park.
"He spent his whole life here, literally," Mahoney said.
Varese's grandfather was a member of the volunteer corps at Northport, Mahoney said. And his father, Robert, who friends said is better known around town as "Beefy," has been an active member for more than three decades -- and recently was elected the Northport Fire Department Chief. A retired
FDNY member, Robert Varese worked Ladder Company 106 in Greenpoint, Brooklyn -- and was a first responder on 9/11.
On Wednesday morning, Mahoney and others recalled how Charles Varese was awarded a meritorious medal for his actions one night in the fall of 2004. Walking on Main Street, Varese smelled smoke and saw flames burning a local deli.
Though he had no protective gear on, Mahoney said, Varese ran into the building, going to the apartments upstairs -- and evacuated the residents.
"He certainly didn't care about his own safety," Mahoney said. "He was thinking of those people -- and he saved them, without regard for himself. It was a brave thing."
Fire officials said that services will be held for Varese Friday night at the Nolan & Taylor-Howe Funeral Parlor in Northport. Funeral services are Saturday at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Northport.
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L.I. Volunteer Firefighter Killed in Crash
another senseless death due to impaired driving! What is it going to take to wake people up!!
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