Longtime New London Firefighter Getting A Little Help From His Friends
Fund-raiser To Help Brendan McGuirk Pay Medical Expenses From Liver Transplant

By ETHAN ROUEN
Day Staff Writer/Columnist, Police/Fire Reporter
Published on 1/27/2005

New London-- Brendan Mcguirk spent the last 30 years caring for New London's residents, and now that he needs help, more than 500 people are gathering in his honor.

McGuirk, 54, a firefighter in New London since 1974, had a liver transplant in October 2004. To help him with mounting medical bills, city and state officials organized a fund-raiser for him that will be held at the Port 'N Starboard banquet hall Friday night.

It's going to be more than a party, said Marie Gravell, a case manager at New London Health and Social Services who is helping organize the event. It's going to be a reunion. People who have retired and people who worked for the city are all going to be there.

McGuirk was diagnosed with liver cancer in April 2004.

When I found out I had cancer, for a couple of minutes you think, oh boy, I'm in tough shape here,' said McGuirk, a devout Catholic. I wrote a letter to God, and I said, God, you take care of this problem because it's too much for me,' and I didn't think about it again.

Doctors said a transplant would not be available until January at the earliest, but on Oct. 23, after McGuirk helped a friend set up for a party at the Port 'N Starboard and then ate a prime rib dinner, he received the call.

I was going to go to work in the morning. They told me I had some time, so I went back to sleep, he said of the night he received a call telling him a donor liver was available. I thought, that prime rib was a good meal if it was my last supper.'

McGuirk, who has a scar that crosses his stomach and rises halfway up his chest, said his recovery was relatively painless, and instead of using a wheelchair he walked out of the intensive care unit after surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York.

During chemotherapy before the surgery, the only time when he did feel ill, he said he was comforted by the selfless camaraderie of his coworkers.

Heather Bunkley, a paramedic at Lawrence & Memorial Hospital, was taking fresh ginger to combat the nausea she felt during her pregnancy. When she saw McGuirk in pain, she gave him the entire jar.

I knew my nausea would pass, but I didn't know about him, she said. I didn't do anything above and beyond. You look out for each other.

Bunkley's husband, Chris, a firefighter in New London, said the generosity springs from the familial atmosphere at the fire department.

I'm sure that at any big employer there's some camaraderie, but I think it's magnified in the fire department, he said. There's a family. You live with these people a couple of days a week. We eat together, we sleep together, we go on calls together, some good and some not so good.

Although McGuirk has been enjoying his recovery, spending time with his four grandchildren and helping other people waiting for transplants, he said he cannot wait until he returns to the fire department in March or April.

He spends a lot of time in a recliner in his living room, monitoring a police scanner and three two-way radios. On Tuesday, he showed up at a house fire on Franklin Street to provide moral support and get a little taste of the action, even if it was from the sidelines.

McGuirk is reluctant to take money from friends, but his prescription drug bill alone has topped $8,000. In addition, he has doctors' bills and the costs of traveling to New York City for treatment.

He's the type of guy who is uncomfortable taking money, said Mayor Gerard Gaynor, an organizer of the event and McGuirk's brother-in-law. But he's an outstanding guy. He's helped so many people in the course of his lifetime.

Gaynor added that the flier for the party has a picture of McGuirk holding a baby he delivered in the back of an ambulance.

The party Friday night, hosted by state Sen. Andrea Stillman, will include a buffet, an auction, a raffle and live music. Tickets cost $25 and can be purchased at the event or by calling Gravell at 447-5226 or 447-2504, Gaynor at 443-6346, or firefighter Dave Pasqualini at 443-0889.

In addition to money raised from ticket sales and the auction, the Jack Cactus Foundation will present McGuirk with a check.

I still feel a little funny about it, but I realize, yeah, I can use a little hand,' McGuirk said. It's such a strange feeling at times. Seeing all this help, I get a little mushy. As strong as you thing you are, there are moments. There are moments.
 

© The Day Publishing Co., 2005
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