San Francisco Chronicle
SAN FRANCISCO — As a kid, Thomas Marovich played with toy fire trucks. He channeled his childhood fascination into a firefighting job with the U.S. Forest Service. Whenever he was off-duty, he flashed his famous “million-dollar smile” and served as a mentor to young firefighters in training.
That was how Marovich, 20, was remembered Thursday at an emotional Mass in Hayward, where he grew up. Marovich died July 21 after falling from a helicopter during a training exercise in Humboldt County.
More than 500 relatives, friends and fellow firefighters, their badges wrapped in black mourning bands, gathered at St. Clement Church in Hayward to honor a man described as selfless. Everybody called Marovich “T.J.” for “Tom Jr.”
Full story: Firefighter called “selfless,” “hero”