Sunday May 29th, 2016: During a service at St. Patricks Cathedral on 5th Avenue, FDNY Retired Captain Thomas Colucci was ordained into priesthood. And, without question, his brothers and sisters of the FDNY came out to support him. Captain Colucci served with the FDNY for 20 years, starting his career in Kingsbridge assigned to Engine 81. After 5 years in the Engine he crossed the floor to Tower Ladder 46 and 4 years later was promoted to Lieutenant, assigned to Engine 3. On 9/11/01, 5 members from Colucci's house (Engine 3/Tower Ladder 12/Battalion 7), never made it back. Lt Colucci spent months at Ground Zero searching for his brothers. Following 9/11, the department underwent a major restructuring, rebuilding of the department to replace the brothers lost. In May 2002, Colucci was promoted to Captain and found his new home in Tower Ladder 21. Ladder 21 lost all members working on 9/11/01. Over the next few years, Captain Colucci worked with brave men to mend broken hearts, dealing with the loss of their bothers while continuing to do the duty of protecting Hells Kitchen on Manhattan's West Side. After 20 years on the job, Captain Colucci had to retire after he suffered a brain injury from an explosion he was at. Colucci says his decision to enter Priesthood was made in response to everything he saw on 9/11. "On 9/11 you saw the worst of humanity; then you saw the best. People say 'Where was Christ that day'; I think he was there in rescuers".
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