John Brian Ball, 34, of Bartlett passed away August 3, 2009 due to a tree-trimming accident. Brian was a 12-year veteran of the Bartlett Fire Department, part owner of Chipper's Tree Service, and loved riding motorcycles; but the most important thing in his life was his wife and kids, and learning more about his new found faith in God. He was preceded in death by his father, Joel R. Ball and is survived by his wife Pamela Trotter Ball; his two sons Jake, 4, and Dylan, 3; mother and father, Susan and Herbert Holst of Bartlett; grandparents, John and Dorothy Reinhardt; sister, Julie Moretta & Mike of Bartlett; nephews, Kaleb, Jacob and Justin; brother Kevin Holst of Murfreesboro, TN; step-sister, Debbie LaFever of Smithville, TN. Visitation will be Thursday August 6 at Memphis Funeral Home Germantown Parkway Chapel from 5-8 pm. Funeral services will be held Friday August 7 at Bartlett Baptist Church starting at 9:30 am. Following the service the Bartlett Fire Dept. and Shelby County Sheriff's Dept. will escort the family and friends past Brian's Fire Station #3 before honoring him at a graveside ceremony at Memory Hill Gardens in Bartlett. The family suggests in lieu of flowers please consider memorials be sent to Dream Factory, P.O. Box 381766, Memphis, TN 38183-1766, c/o Brian Ball or the Alzheimer's Association, 326 Ellsworth, Memphis, TN 38111. Memphis Funeral Home Germantown Parkway Chapel Phone (Published in The Commercial Appeal on 8/6/2009)
The Bartlett Fire Department's "B" shift was on duty Tuesday in front of stations with flags at half-mast and black ribbons wrapped around their badges. The void was even more prominent at Station 3 on Memphis-Arlington Road, where Firefighter Brian Ball was assigned. Tuesday was the first day Ball's comrades were at work without the 12-year department veteran. Ball, 34, was killed Monday afternoon in an accident. He was doing tree work -- off-duty -- in the Cordova area ravaged by last week's tornadoes. He was pronounced dead from the injuries at Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett. "There's an overwhelming feeling, of course, of sadness." said Asst. Fire Chief Danny Baxter. "There's an overwhelming feeling of loss. The uniformed fire service is an extended family." Fire Chief Terry Wiggins was out of the city, and Baxter spoke for the department and its 92 uniformed personnel. City officials asked that the media respect the other firefighters' privacy. Ball was "a good utility fielder," Baxter said, with the ability to pull a hose, fight a fire, ride an ambulance and comfort the injured. The assistant chief said Ball had a knack for providing a calming effect for victims. "That's something you can't train," Baxter said. "It's just a natural thing that came to him." Ball reportedly was working on trees damaged by the storm Monday afternoon when he was trapped under a fallen tree. Like many firefighters, Ball had a second job he worked on days he wasn't scheduled for a 24-hour shift with the department. Bartlett officials did not discuss details of the case, referring questions to Memphis Fire Department because the accident happened in Memphis. Memphis Fire Department spokesman Lt. Wayne Cooke said the call involved a report of a tree falling on Ball, but it was removed by the time they arrived. The Bartlett firefighter was transported to Saint Francis. And on Tuesday, Ball's fellow firefighters were struggling with the loss. "These people are trained and accustomed to dealing with death and with catastrophe," Baxter said. "But when it's one of your own, they still have to process it like any other family member does." (By Clay Bailey, Published in The Commercial Appeal 8/5/2009)
The Bartlett Fire Department's "B" shift was on duty Tuesday in front of stations with flags at half-mast and black ribbons wrapped around their badges. The void was even more prominent at Station 3 on Memphis-Arlington Road, where Firefighter Brian Ball was assigned. Tuesday was the first day Ball's comrades were at work without the 12-year department veteran. Ball, 34, was killed Monday afternoon in an accident. He was doing tree work -- off-duty -- in the Cordova area ravaged by last week's tornadoes. He was pronounced dead from the injuries at Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett. "There's an overwhelming feeling, of course, of sadness." said Asst. Fire Chief Danny Baxter. "There's an overwhelming feeling of loss. The uniformed fire service is an extended family." Fire Chief Terry Wiggins was out of the city, and Baxter spoke for the department and its 92 uniformed personnel. City officials asked that the media respect the other firefighters' privacy. Ball was "a good utility fielder," Baxter said, with the ability to pull a hose, fight a fire, ride an ambulance and comfort the injured. The assistant chief said Ball had a knack for providing a calming effect for victims. "That's something you can't train," Baxter said. "It's just a natural thing that came to him." Ball reportedly was working on trees damaged by the storm Monday afternoon when he was trapped under a fallen tree. Like many firefighters, Ball had a second job he worked on days he wasn't scheduled for a 24-hour shift with the department. Bartlett officials did not discuss details of the case, referring questions to Memphis Fire Department because the accident happened in Memphis. Memphis Fire Department spokesman Lt. Wayne Cooke said the call involved a report of a tree falling on Ball, but it was removed by the time they arrived. The Bartlett firefighter was transported to Saint Francis. And on Tuesday, Ball's fellow firefighters were struggling with the loss. "These people are trained and accustomed to dealing with death and with catastrophe," Baxter said. "But when it's one of your own, they still have to process it like any other family member does." (By Clay Bailey, Published in The Commercial Appeal 8/5/2009)
John Brian Ball, 34, of Bartlett passed away August 3, 2009 due to a tree-trimming accident. Brian was a 12-year veteran of the Bartlett Fire Department, part owner of Chipper's Tree Service, and loved riding motorcycles; but the most important thing in his life was his wife and kids, and learning more about his new found faith in God. He was preceded in death by his father, Joel R. Ball and is survived by his wife Pamela Trotter Ball; his two sons Jake, 4, and Dylan, 3; mother and father, Susan and Herbert Holst of Bartlett; grandparents, John and Dorothy Reinhardt; sister, Julie Moretta & Mike of Bartlett; nephews, Kaleb, Jacob and Justin; brother Kevin Holst of Murfreesboro, TN; step-sister, Debbie LaFever of Smithville, TN. Visitation will be Thursday August 6 at Memphis Funeral Home Germantown Parkway Chapel from 5-8 pm. Funeral services will be held Friday August 7 at Bartlett Baptist Church starting at 9:30 am. Following the service the Bartlett Fire Dept. and Shelby County Sheriff's Dept. will escort the family and friends past Brian's Fire Station #3 before honoring him at a graveside ceremony at Memory Hill Gardens in Bartlett. The family suggests in lieu of flowers please consider memorials be sent to Dream Factory, P.O. Box 381766, Memphis, TN 38183-1766, c/o Brian Ball or the Alzheimer's Association, 326 Ellsworth, Memphis, TN 38111. Memphis Funeral Home Germantown Parkway Chapel Phone (Published in The Commercial Appeal on 8/6/2009)
The Bartlett Fire Department's "B" shift was on duty Tuesday in front of stations with flags at half-mast and black ribbons wrapped around their badges. The void was even more prominent at Station 3 on Memphis-Arlington Road, where Firefighter Brian Ball was assigned. Tuesday was the first day Ball's comrades were at work without the 12-year department veteran. Ball, 34, was killed Monday afternoon in an accident. He was doing tree work -- off-duty -- in the Cordova area ravaged by last week's tornadoes. He was pronounced dead from the injuries at Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett. "There's an overwhelming feeling, of course, of sadness." said Asst. Fire Chief Danny Baxter. "There's an overwhelming feeling of loss. The uniformed fire service is an extended family." Fire Chief Terry Wiggins was out of the city, and Baxter spoke for the department and its 92 uniformed personnel. City officials asked that the media respect the other firefighters' privacy. Ball was "a good utility fielder," Baxter said, with the ability to pull a hose, fight a fire, ride an ambulance and comfort the injured. The assistant chief said Ball had a knack for providing a calming effect for victims. "That's something you can't train," Baxter said. "It's just a natural thing that came to him." Ball reportedly was working on trees damaged by the storm Monday afternoon when he was trapped under a fallen tree. Like many firefighters, Ball had a second job he worked on days he wasn't scheduled for a 24-hour shift with the department. Bartlett officials did not discuss details of the case, referring questions to Memphis Fire Department because the accident happened in Memphis. Memphis Fire Department spokesman Lt. Wayne Cooke said the call involved a report of a tree falling on Ball, but it was removed by the time they arrived. The Bartlett firefighter was transported to Saint Francis. And on Tuesday, Ball's fellow firefighters were struggling with the loss. "These people are trained and accustomed to dealing with death and with catastrophe," Baxter said. "But when it's one of your own, they still have to process it like any other family member does." (By Clay Bailey, Published in The Commercial Appeal 8/5/2009)
The Bartlett Fire Department's "B" shift was on duty Tuesday in front of stations with flags at half-mast and black ribbons wrapped around their badges. The void was even more prominent at Station 3 on Memphis-Arlington Road, where Firefighter Brian Ball was assigned. Tuesday was the first day Ball's comrades were at work without the 12-year department veteran. Ball, 34, was killed Monday afternoon in an accident. He was doing tree work -- off-duty -- in the Cordova area ravaged by last week's tornadoes. He was pronounced dead from the injuries at Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett. "There's an overwhelming feeling, of course, of sadness." said Asst. Fire Chief Danny Baxter. "There's an overwhelming feeling of loss. The uniformed fire service is an extended family." Fire Chief Terry Wiggins was out of the city, and Baxter spoke for the department and its 92 uniformed personnel. City officials asked that the media respect the other firefighters' privacy. Ball was "a good utility fielder," Baxter said, with the ability to pull a hose, fight a fire, ride an ambulance and comfort the injured. The assistant chief said Ball had a knack for providing a calming effect for victims. "That's something you can't train," Baxter said. "It's just a natural thing that came to him." Ball reportedly was working on trees damaged by the storm Monday afternoon when he was trapped under a fallen tree. Like many firefighters, Ball had a second job he worked on days he wasn't scheduled for a 24-hour shift with the department. Bartlett officials did not discuss details of the case, referring questions to Memphis Fire Department because the accident happened in Memphis. Memphis Fire Department spokesman Lt. Wayne Cooke said the call involved a report of a tree falling on Ball, but it was removed by the time they arrived. The Bartlett firefighter was transported to Saint Francis. And on Tuesday, Ball's fellow firefighters were struggling with the loss. "These people are trained and accustomed to dealing with death and with catastrophe," Baxter said. "But when it's one of your own, they still have to process it like any other family member does." (By Clay Bailey, Published in The Commercial Appeal 8/5/2009)
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