NOTE: The "Amazing Grace" documentary is a separate project being undertaken by a team of folks based in Portland, Oregon. While it is being publicized on this site, "Hooligan" and Firepipesanddrums.Com are not producing the film. Inquiries regarding "Amazing Grace" may be directed to Tim Birr at birrtb@msn.com
Update February 16, 2007
On a cold, windy, rainy, and overcast February day in Seattle, the "Amazing Grace" project took a huge step forward and officially became an in-production documentary. We were in the Emerald City at the invitation of the Seattle Firefighters Pipes and Drums to cover the February 8 line-of-duty memorial service for Battalion Chief Jim Scragg , who succumbed to lung cancer at the age of 54.
Those of us producing this documentary knew that the story of police and fire pipe bands would be incomplete without examining the role of the bands in line-of-duty funerals, but were frankly apprehensive about trying to talk our way into bringing cameras and microphones into the emotional aftermath of a line-of-duty death. To their credit, the members of the SFP&D, knowing what we were trying to accomplish, not only alerted us to the memorial, but approached the Scragg family and their department, securing their permission for us to be there. For that, we are deeply grateful.
Jim Scragg, by all accounts, was a "firefighter's firefighter," and one of those rare chief officers who could be both a friend and a supervisor at the same time. A lifelong fitness buff and outdoor enthusiast, he loved the music of Neil Young, and was a survivor of the 1994 Mary Pang Fire, which took the lives of four Seattle firefighters and changed his life forever. As a line battalion chief, he became passionate about the safety of those under his command, and was accordingly respected and loved in turn.
His memorial was an emotional pageant that detailed his life and included remembrances by Seattle Fire Chief Gregory Dean and Mayor Greg Nickels. It also included several beautiful performances by the SFP&D, who not only performed at several occasions in the service, but were part of a procession through the streets of downtown Seattle, which saw passersby, construction workers, and others pause in their daily routine to doff their hats, cross their hearts and honor the memory of a true local hero.
Our sincere thanks (and heartfelt condolences) go to the Seattle Firefighters Pipes and Drums.
BACKGROUND
The tradition of American police and fire piping and drumming is rich with honor and history, but is a story that has never been fully told. Kerry Sheridan’s 2004 book “Bagpipe Brothers” was the first and only effort to tell the outside world about this tradition but was a story about one band during an incredibly tragic episode in U.S. history (the FDNY Emeralds in the wake of 9-11).
Three of us want to change that. In recent weeks, I’ve joined with a veteran journalist and an independent filmmaker to commit to tell the story of America’s police and fire pipe bands in a documentary. Under the working title of “Amazing Grace,” we hope to produce a documentary that traces the history of public safety pipe bands, explores the growth of this movement in recent years, and examines why police officers and firefighters join these bands and what it means to them.
By way of introduction, I’m Tim Birr, a retired firefighter and a piper for 40 years, currently pipe major of the Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue pipe band here in Oregon. My partners are Bill Gallagher, a veteran radio reporter and talk show host in San Francisco and Portland (OR); and Jerry Makare, an independent filmmaker based here in Portland. Bill, Jerry, and I share a passion for storytelling, cops and firefighters, and things Irish…all of which lie at the roots of this tradition.
Over the next year, we hope to bring cameras and microphones to various events where police and fire (and EMS bands) gather to capture the history, tradition, and personal stories of those of you who are part of this movement.
We want to make this an all public safety project because the history is so intertwined; the NYPD band preceded the FDNY band, and it all grew from there. And by telling this story from a police and fire perspective, we increase the number of people who will be interested and supportive of this effort.
Right now, we’re at the beginning of this project. We’ve just purchased equipment. We’ve identified a number of events we’d like to get to. We’re working to get grants from several different sources. We’re figuring out who we need permission from (like the IAFF) to show up and film at their events.
But we’re committed to telling this story.
What we need for now is your cooperation…your willingness to tell us your stories…and maybe a spare mattress if we’re in your community. We’re working on the cheap, and looking for support wherever we can find it.
We’ll keep you posted…
