By Fred Hanson
The Patriot Ledger
BRAINTREE, Mass. — The gold badge he now wears as deputy fire chief has a special meaning for Daniel McDonnell.
It belonged to his dad, the late Deputy Fire Chief John McDonnell, who died of a heart attack at the fire station after returning from a call in 1983.
"That's something I'll have with me the rest of my career," McDonnell said of the badge.
His wife, Tricia, pinned it on his dress uniform during a swearing-in ceremony at town hall Tuesday afternoon. The ceremony was held on what would have been John McDonnell's 86th birthday.
"It was a coincidence," Daniel McDonnell said of the scheduling.
He also plans to wear his father's deputy chief fire helmet on the job. The helmet was presented to the family after his father's death.
His grandfather and an uncle were also firefighters, he said.
The bridge on Mahar Highway over the Monatiquot River is named for John McDonnell, who was a Braintree firefighter for 34 years.
Also recognized at the ceremony was another another veteran Braintree firefighter, Robert Leone, who was promoted to lieutenant.
McDonnell has received numerous commendations during his career. His group received the meritorious conduct award at the state Firefighter of the Year ceremonies for its role in the rescue of 16 to 18 people from a Fore River Shipyard building damaged by a crane collapse in 2005.
McDonnell paid tribute to his fellow firefighters, several of whom attended a ceremony that was delayed due to a fire call.
"I am currently working with the finest bunch of people the department has to offer," he said.
Mayor Joseph Sullivan said the ceremony enables the town to recognize "how hard these firefighters worked to achieve this rank and responsibility."
He also thanked the families of the firefighters for sharing their husbands and fathers with the town.
McDonnell joined the department as a call firefighter in 1975. He became a permanent firefighter in 1982 and was promoted to lieutenant in 2001 and captain in 2007. He had been working as assistant fire alarm superintendent for the past year, and is a former member of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority tunnel rescue team.
The McDonnells, who live in Abington, have four children. Daniel McConnell is a former member of the Abington Finance Committee.
A graduate of Braintree High School, Leone joined the fire department in 1989. He and his wife, Jennifer, a teacher in the Braintree schools, have two children. They live in Weymouth.
Copyright 2011 The Patriot Ledger 
