Hundreds Gather to Mourn Loss of Whitefield Firefighter

The American flag stood at half mast outside Whitefield Elementary School on Saturday, March 14 as hundreds gathered to celebrate the life and mourn the loss of Lt. David James Mason, of Whitefield Fire and Rescue.


Mason passed away March 6 after a short battle with lung cancer. He was 26. Area fire departments and emergency responders turned out to honor and salute Mason – a man who devoted much of his life to serving his community.


In an era when volunteer fire departments struggle to find new recruits, Mason stood out as a young man who was oftentimes first on the scene for emergency calls. He was trained in some of the most advanced firefighting techniques in the profession and was also an emergency medical technician.


When Whitefield’s volunteer firefighters or first responders received a page, friends and family said, Mason could be counted on to respond. His commitment, skill, and leadership abilities earned him the rank of lieutenant in Whitefield Fire and Rescue at the age of 21.


He was also elected president of the Coopers Mills Volunteer Fire Department Association, a position he filled for four years.


His loss has “left a void,” members of Whitefield Fire and Rescue said – a void only magnified by his young age and potential.


Whitefield Fire and Rescue stood with Mason in his battle against lung cancer and organized a series of benefits for him and his family. On March 14, they said a painful goodbye in a ceremony true to the fire rescue tradition Mason lived for.

Firefighters flank Whitefield Fire and Rescue Lt. David James Mason’s ashes and photo during his service at Whitefield Elementary School Saturday, March 14. Area firefighters and hundreds of community members gathered to honor and salute Mason, who passed away March 6. (Abigail Adams photo)

Pittston, Jefferson, Somerville, Chelsea, Bristol, and Whitefield fire engines lined the street outside Whitefield Elementary School. An RSU 12 bus shuttled attendees from overflow parking.


Damariscotta and Waldoboro fire trucks formed an arch with their ladders at the entrance to the school. Hundreds gathered in the gymnasium that only a year earlier Mason burst into in response to a fire call.


“Amazing Grace” sounded on the bagpipes as Mason’s mother, Charlene Donahue; significant other, Sarah Kramer; and brother, Brian Mason; held hands and walked to their seats with a procession of firefighters.


Mason’s ashes and uniform were placed on the stage.


Firefighters, first responders, and representatives from law enforcement agencies stood at attention along the gym walls as the Rev. Raymond Anderson led services.


Tears flowed freely and laughter rang out as David Mason was remembered. Richard Mason, David Richmond, Kevin Rousseau, and Brian Huntley spoke with pride about the boy they remembered and the man David Mason had become.


They spoke of Mason at age 6 when he lost his father, Scott Mason, to cancer. They spoke of him as a youth growing up, as an adolescent falling in love with Kramer, and as a man who embodied hard work, reliability, dedication, and devotion to his family and community.


Richard Mason, Mason’s uncle, spoke of the lifetime of stories the two had accumulated in their short time together – from hunting and fishing trips where they never shot much game or caught much fish to camping trips where they brought everything with them but the tent.


“A man traipsing through the woods with a boy on his heels,” Richard Mason said. “Two men after a day of hunting not ready to go home yet … I’m blessed with the stories I have.”


David Richmond spoke of his “famous relationship” with David Mason and their time together on the Hundred Acre Wood horse farm in Jefferson where Mason spent much of his adolescence and where he met Kramer.


Richmond spoke of his efforts to mentor Mason and teach him what Mason’s father would have, had he lived. The lessons, Richmond said, oftentimes became about what not to do, like take down a power line when removing a tree. Mason developed his own skills so quickly, Richmond said, Mason ended up teaching him.


Mason’s relationship with Kramer was akin to the fairytale romance in the “Princess Bride,” Richmond said, with a slight wardrobe change. “He was a son, a nephew, a brother to us all,” Richmond said.


Rousseau said he was not related to David Mason by blood but said Mason was his family. He spoke of Mason’s mechanical and electrical engineering capabilities, the inventions never far from Mason’s mind, and his love and devotion to his mother, his community, and to the Cooper’s Mills Volunteer Fire Department.


“He answered the call in the darkest hour of need,” Rousseau said. “Like all of you I feel robbed. I won’t be able to lean on him anymore.”


Huntley spoke on behalf of the firefighting community – a community Mason had been a part of since his birth. Mason’s father, Scott Mason, was a member of the Coopers Mills Volunteer Fire Department. David Mason self-recruited himself to the Coopers Mills Volunteer Fire Department at the age of 7, Huntley said.


A drawing Mason made of the Coopers Mills station as a Whitefield Elementary School student is hung on the station’s second floor, a small indication of the enormous mark Mason made on the firefighting community.


Huntley spoke of responding to a fire with Mason, which was quickly suppressed due to Mason’s ingenuity. “That was David being David,” Huntley said.


The room fell quite as the audience prepared to hear the last call, the traditional farewell for firefighters. The bell was rung and a page was sent out over the communication system.


“Whitefield 1 to Whitefield 9,” Whitefield Fire Chief Scott Higgins called out in the page. “Whitefield 1 to Whitefield 9 … negative contact.”


Higgins announced the end of Lt. David Mason’s service – a service filled with honor and distinction. “Godspeed brother,” Higgins said, “we’ll take it from here.”


The bagpipes sounded. A procession of firefighters carried Mason’s ashes and uniform to Coopers Mills Engine 5 stationed outside. As one of its last official acts of duty before it is placed out of service, Engine 5 transported David Mason to his final resting place, just as it had done for Scott Mason almost 20 years ago.


Engine 5 was followed by a procession of engines from area fire departments.


Jeff Read, of the Coopers Mills Volunteer Fire Department Association, said he knew David for probably the least amount of time of anyone in the association. “He changed my life,” Read said.


Read quit smoking the day he learned of Mason’s diagnosis of lung cancer. Mason was a non-smoker.


“He was family to the town of Whitefield,” Jeff Newell, president of the Kings Mills Fire Department, said.


“He was one of Whitefield’s sons,” Deputy Chief Tom Feeney said. For the loss being felt, “there just aren’t words,” Feeney said.


Online condolences can be made at www.directcremationofmaine.com.


Those who want to honor David Mason are encouraged to support and serve on their community’s fire department.