Friend: 'We know what they were like when they were alive'

Jeff Aumuller and his wife, Karen, draped themselves in hospital gowns, gloves and surgical masks in order to say goodbye to their friend.

Kevin Finnerty was unconscious and dying. The doctor at Loyola Medical Center told them he didn't have an inch of usable tissue for a skin graft and that the fire had destroyed his lungs.

The Aumullers knew Finnerty would be dead within hours. Aumuller promised his unconscious friend he would look over his two surviving children.

But those minutes at his bedside Tuesday afternoon and the shocking news that Kevin orchestrated the fire aren't what the Aumullers choose to remember.

"The Finnertys were first-class people and I just love them," Aumuller said. "Whatever happened at the end is immaterial. We know what they were like when they were alive."

The friendship dates back about four years, when Kevin volunteered to help coach his son, Garrett's, youth baseball team. Aumuller, whose son also played on the team, was the manager. Kevin Finnerty's calm demeanor complemented Aumuller on the baseball diamond, a lot like Kevin complemented an outgoing and energetic Trish at home.

"Kevin was very soft-spoken and mellow with the boys. I never saw him get angry," Aumuller said. "Trish was old school Irish and a big jokester."

Kevin and Garrett were always reliable, never missing games or practices, where 6-year-old Pierce was often the batboy. They went to barbecues at the Finnerty's and their sons had sleepovers.

Aumuller recalled a game their team was leading by 20 runs. Garrett, who desperately wanted to pitch, gave up 19 runs in a 90-minute inning.

"He smiled the whole time and asked when he could pitch again," Aumuller said. "He was just so happy to be one of the boys."

Aumuller said Kevin was behaving normally at their most recent practice. Absolutely nothing indicated there were problems, he said.

"This is just a huge loss for the community," Aumuller said.