Copyright 2006 The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
All Rights Reserved
By GLENN SMITH
The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)
For two years, Gary Fulciniti wore a North Charleston Fire Department patch on his sleeve as he charged into burning buildings hoping to save lives and property.
That same emblem recently went on sale to the highest bidder as the former firefighter tries to save his own home from foreclosure.
The patch, pulled from Fulciniti’s old uniform and mounted in a frame, was offered for auction on the eBay Web site with a minimum bid of $500. His plan was to raise cash to help pay his mortgage, which he has struggled to do since he was injured battling a blaze in January 2004.
North Charleston officials weren’t amused, saying he was trying to hawk property that didn’t belong to him.
“An employee can’t just walk away and keep city property to sell or barter with,” said Spencer Pryor, the city’s public safety spokesman.
Fulciniti said he didn’t mean any harm and removed the item from the Web site Tuesday, replacing it with another patch from his time as a volunteer firefighter in New Jersey. Perhaps he’ll have better luck with this one. After eight days on eBay, he hadn’t received a single nibble on the North Charleston patch.
“It is a little discouraging,” Fulciniti said. “Not too long ago, some kind of leftover vegetable from Christmas sold on eBay for like $2,000.”
Fulciniti’s offering wasn’t exactly a bargain among the dozens of firefighter patches available on eBay. Most retail for between 99 cents and $15. Along with a steep price he included a plea for help in his posting: “I risked my life and would do it again but now I am in need of saving.”
The 37-year-old Clarendon County resident said the $285 he receives weekly in worker’s compensation isn’t enough to support his family and pay his mortgage. They owe about $100,000 on their mobile home and 15 acres in Alcolu, he said.
Fulciniti lost his job in July after he didn’t return from medical leave. He said back and leg injuries he received when his foot went through the floor of a Fernwood Drive home left him unable to work as a firefighter or perform manual labor.
Fulciniti said he assumed the old patch was his to keep. But not wanting to stir up trouble with his former employer, he put in the mail Tuesday to return to North Charleston, he said.
Fulciniti said he initially envisioned the patch ending up on display in his home with others he collected during 18 years as a firefighter. A display doesn’t make much sense, however, without a wall to hang it on.
“I wanted to keep it for sentimental value,” he said. “But right now, that’s not going to help us any if we lose our home.”