http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009903180326
Perry man remembered as 'helpful guy'
Friends mourning firefighter who died in tree-felling accident
Kathryn Prater • [email protected] • March 18, 2009 • From Lansing State Journal
PERRY - Friends remember Perry firefighter Jeffrey Crawford as a dependable man who would do anything to help a friend.
He was helping people Friday when he was killed in a tree-felling accident, said Richard Burlingame, who knew Crawford through Perry's Masonic Lodge No. 350.
Crawford, 47, was helping two other Masons clear dead trees and undergrowth on a rural property just north of Perry, he said.
Crawford was cutting down a tree about noon Friday when the tree kicked back and hit him, said Dr. Joyce deJong, Shiawassee County's deputy medical examiner.
He died from blunt force injuries at Owosso Memorial Hospital.
"He was a very helpful guy. In any of our activities, he always would volunteer," said Burlingame, the Mason lodge's secretary.
"It's a sad occurrence and a sad situation. He was a good man."
Crawford was the group's treasurer, he said.
He also worked on the assembly line at General Motors Corp.'s Delta Township assembly plant.
"Jeff was very dependable. Any time there was a project that needed to be done at the fire station, Jeff was the first to volunteer," Perry Fire Department Chief Guy Hubbard said.
"He was a good guy. You could depend on him for anything. He was one of my best friends, and he made sure that you were OK. He made sure that if you needed anything, he was there to provide it."
Hubbard said they'd worked together since Crawford joined the department as a paid on-call firefighter 15 years ago.
Crawford volunteered to help with activities such as fire prevention at schools, fundraisers for the department, parades and funerals, Hubbard said.
The 1979 Perry High School graduate also was a member of the Shriners and helped out with the Perry Sports Boosters.
Crawford was an "outdoorsman," and loved to hunt and fish, Burlingame said.
Crawford is survived by his son, Drew; daughter, Kaitlyn; parents Gary and Diana Crawford, of Owosso; four brothers and many other family members.
Perry man remembered as 'helpful guy'
Friends mourning firefighter who died in tree-felling accident
Kathryn Prater • [email protected] • March 18, 2009 • From Lansing State Journal
PERRY - Friends remember Perry firefighter Jeffrey Crawford as a dependable man who would do anything to help a friend.
He was helping people Friday when he was killed in a tree-felling accident, said Richard Burlingame, who knew Crawford through Perry's Masonic Lodge No. 350.
Crawford, 47, was helping two other Masons clear dead trees and undergrowth on a rural property just north of Perry, he said.
Crawford was cutting down a tree about noon Friday when the tree kicked back and hit him, said Dr. Joyce deJong, Shiawassee County's deputy medical examiner.
He died from blunt force injuries at Owosso Memorial Hospital.
"He was a very helpful guy. In any of our activities, he always would volunteer," said Burlingame, the Mason lodge's secretary.
"It's a sad occurrence and a sad situation. He was a good man."
Crawford was the group's treasurer, he said.
He also worked on the assembly line at General Motors Corp.'s Delta Township assembly plant.
"Jeff was very dependable. Any time there was a project that needed to be done at the fire station, Jeff was the first to volunteer," Perry Fire Department Chief Guy Hubbard said.
"He was a good guy. You could depend on him for anything. He was one of my best friends, and he made sure that you were OK. He made sure that if you needed anything, he was there to provide it."
Hubbard said they'd worked together since Crawford joined the department as a paid on-call firefighter 15 years ago.
Crawford volunteered to help with activities such as fire prevention at schools, fundraisers for the department, parades and funerals, Hubbard said.
The 1979 Perry High School graduate also was a member of the Shriners and helped out with the Perry Sports Boosters.
Crawford was an "outdoorsman," and loved to hunt and fish, Burlingame said.
Crawford is survived by his son, Drew; daughter, Kaitlyn; parents Gary and Diana Crawford, of Owosso; four brothers and many other family members.
