Sunday, May 14, 2006

Westport Fire Volunteers Honor One of Their Own

Westport Volunteer Fire Department Deputy Chief Ken Gilbertie presents the Rescue 8 dedication plaque to Carol and Nancy Cardozo in honor of their late father, longtime volunteer George H. Cardozo.

Contributed photo

The Westport Volunteer Fire Department (WVFD) has presented the dedication plaque from the retired Rescue 8 truck of the Westport Fire Department to members of the family of the late volunteer firefighter George H. Cardozo.

Cardozo, who died in the line of duty Dec. 2, 2000, at the age of 80 after assisting at a structure fire on Marion Road, was the driving force in the volunteer organization. He spearheaded the fundraising, design and purchase of the rescue truck in 1982.

“He strongly believed in volunteer community service and he set high standards for others to follow,” said Volunteer Deputy Chief Ken Gilbertie.

The WVFD expressed its gratitude to Cardozo in presenting to his daughters Carol and Nancy the plaque that bears his name for his efforts to purchase the vehicle. 

The dedication plaque was displayed on Rescue 8 during its 22 years of service to Westport before it was replaced last year by a modern state-of the-art vehicle.

Both Nancy, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Carol, of Austin, Texas, at one time also served in the WVFD with their father.

George Cardozo, in addition to being a longtime volunteer firefighter, was a well known Westport photographer. For many years, he had a studio near the Green’s Farms station.  In his later service to the WVFD, he served as official photographer.

Cardozo and his wife, Marion, who died in 2002, lived in Westport for almost 50 years.

Cardozo was not only a veteran of the fire service—he also served in World War II as a radio engineer with the Army Air Corps in the China-Burma-India Theater.

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