Memories of Brian McAleese
Former classmate remembers Brian's spirit
I saw your online piece about Brian and had to share my memories of him. I grew up with Brian in Baldwin. We went to Plaza Elementary together. Because my last name started with a "P," I was always seated near or next to Brian in class. He had a spirit that could fill a room! I remember as a little girl, he was a bit of a class clown but always warm and sweet.
I still live in Baldwin and every time I pass the street that was named after him, I am filled with memories of a genuine smile that could light up the dullest of classrooms and hallways! Then, the sadness sets in. That heaven needed another angel, doesn't quite soothe the pain of such a great loss.
I listen for his name every 9/11 be read and think about how he used to pull my braids and endlessly and playfully tease me in grammar school. He used to call me the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria -- a play on my name Ntina. I think about how Brian selflessly and bravely went to Ground Zero that day to save lives and bring him up every year in my classroom (I teach in Hewlett High School) as the epitomy of courage on 9/11. I share pictures of him in Plaza and memorialize him every September. May he rest in peace. He has been missed.
Thanks for listening,
Ntina Paleos, Baldwin
Fellow firefighter honored to know Brian
Brian was a great friend, father, husband and firefighter. I am the father of 4 boys and if my children go on to be as caring and giving as Brian I would be the most proudest man alive. It was and is an honor to have known Brian. I think of him often, especially when I see someone doing a charitable gesture. I miss him and hope that his children realize how great a person he was. I am sure Dawn will relate to her children what Brian was all about. It was never about him but about everyone else surrounding him. I miss you brother and hope that some day we will meet again.
Tom Melia, Massapequa
Former member of Engine Company 226
Friend: Brian's kindness meant a lot to our family
Brian’s acts of kindness were a constant throughout his life. My father, Lt. John Baker, died after a long debilitating illness. Brian found out that we wanted our dad to be buried in a FDNY uniform. Without discussing it with anyone, Brian drove out to the funeral home in New Jersey and made the undertaker redress my father in a FDNY uniform. His acts of kindness that day meant the world to our family. He gave our father back the dignity he had lost from Alzheimer’s.
We discovered it was Brian’s uniform after his death on 9/11.
Catherine Baker Gillespie
