Cars filled the parking lot at the Huron County Fairgrounds Friday afternoon as mourners gathered to pay their respects during calling hours for John Saunders, a volunteer firefighter with the Tri-Community Joint Fire Department, who died while fighting a house fire last week.
A large American flag hung between two fire company ladder trucks at the front of the parking lot in his honor, and the building was filled with people wearing police and fire uniforms, including representatives from the State Fire Marshal's office.
Saunders, 41, of Greenwich, is one of two firefighters in Ohio who will be laid to rest this weekend after dying in the line of duty last week.
In Wayne County, the community is remembering Lt. Paul Mickolick, 43, of West Salem, a firefighter paramedic with Town and Country Fire District, who died in a crash on April 18.
Saunders was born in Oberlin and was a graduate of Western Reserve High School and Erie Huron Ottawa Vocational Education Career Center, according to his obituary. He worked at R+L Carriers for 21 years and served as a volunteer firefighter for 15. He was also a truck pulling enthusiast and was a member of the Central Ohio Truck Pull Circuit.
"John was a devoted family man who worked tirelessly to care for and support his loved ones," his obituary says. "His legacy of service, strength and selflessness will live on in the hearts of all who knew him."
Additional calling hours for Saunders will take place Saturday from 10 am to 12 pm at the Huron County Fairgrounds. His funeral is Saturday at 1 pm at the fairgrounds.
The fire in Huron County is currently under investigation by the State Fire Marshal's Fire and Explosion Investigations Bureau, the Huron County Sheriff's Office and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, according to a press release from the State Fire Marshal's office.
Mickolick was a five-year veteran of the Town and Country Fire District, having started as a volunteer in 2020 before being hired as a firefighter paramedic in 2022. Born in Cleveland, he was a 2000 graduate of Olmsted Falls High School and received his associate's in paramedicine from Cuyahoga Community College in 2003, according to his obituary. Prior to working at the fire department, he was a flight paramedic for Cleveland Clinic Critical Care Transport for 16 years.
"Paul had a love for the job. He had a love for helping people. He was a phenomenal paramedic and an amazing teacher," Town and Country Fire District Chief Adam Hory said. "He made everyone around him better. I'm sure we can line the streets with people who are still alive today, because Paul was there for their emergency."
The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating the crash that killed Mickolick, as he assisted a driver stuck in a ditch. A 2006 Cadillac CTS operated by a 64-year-old West Salem man drove into the ditch shortly after Mickolick arrived at the scene. The driver was uninjured. Mickolick and the stuck driver, Tylor James Green, 33 of West Salem, were transported by life flight to Cleveland Clinic Lodi Hospital, where Mickolick died. The investigation will be forwarded to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office upon completion.
Mickolick's calling hours are Saturday from 1:00 to 4:00 pm and 5:00 to 8:00 pm at Church of the Saviour in Wooster. His funeral is Sunday at 2:00 pm.
