Sick, and hoping cancer gets on 9/11 list
Photo credit: Newsday/Danielle Finkelstein | From left: Firefighter Ray Pfeifer shares an emotional greeting with his friend Army Lieutenant Colonel Reid Sawyer, at a fundraiser. Family, friends, and firefighters from Manhattan, Long Island, as well as a handful from around the country gathered in East Meadow Saturday to raise money for their friend Ray Pfeifer, an ex-captain of the East Meadow Fire Department, and 26-year-member of FDNY Engine Co. 40, and Ladder Co. 35. Pfeifer, a 9/11 first responder, is suffering from advanced stage cancer and other illnesses caused by his work on the September 11, 2001 rescue operation. (March 28, 2012)
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Remembering 9/11, a decade later
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Long Island's 9/11 ceremonies
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Ray Pfiefer didn't want to be the center of attention Saturday.
The 26-year FDNY veteran and East Meadow volunteer firefighter from Hicksville, who worked eight months at Ground Zero after Sept. 11, is more used to taking care of others' needs.
But nine years after the 2001 attacks, Pfiefer, 54, was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney cancer that had spread to his bones. Doctors removed his...
