Palatine to honor fallen firefighters Feb. 23

The Palatine Fire Department will be hosting a brief ceremony at 9 a.m. Friday, Feb. 23, to recognize the service and sacrifice of three volunteer firefighters who died in the line of duty.

The ceremony marks the 45th anniversary of the deaths of John Wilson, Richard Freeman and Warren Ahlgrim, who were killed Feb. 23, 1973 fighting a fire in the Ben Franklin store in downtown Palatine.

The early morning fire started in the store's basement and quickly spread throughout the building. Wilson, Freeman, and Ahlgrim died while fighting the fire in the basement.

The annual memorial ceremony will be held at the Palatine Firefighters Memorial, at the corner of North Brockway and West Slade streets in downtown Palatine. The Palatine Fire Department Honor Guard will present a wreath and perform a brief bell ceremony honoring the three firefighters that paid the ultimate sacrifice 45 years ago.

Members of the public are encouraged to attend.