The Republican National Convention will honor the late fire chief Corey Comperatore. The volunteer firefighter died while attending a Trump Rally last weekend. Shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire on the crowd. Comperatore sadly died attempting to protect his family.
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The family of Comperatore sent his firefighter gear to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Just prior to former president Donald Trump's speech at the RNC, Comperatore's gear will be laid on the stage. The gear includes both his helmet and jacket. It's a reminder that while Trump escaped with a graze to the ear, there was death and a causality. The senseless violence shook the nation.
The firefighter's family laid him to rest on Thursday. Ahead of his casket, a procession of firefighters and law enforcement. Comperatore died shielding his family from gunfire. Trump will officially accept the Republican Party's nomination. Trump indicated that he has torn up his original RNC speech to focus on unity.
"I basically had a speech that was an unbelievable rip-roarer," he said according to The Washington Examiner. "It was brutal — really good, really tough. [Last night] I threw it out. I think it would be very bad if I got up and started going wild about how horrible everybody is, and how corrupt and crooked, even if it's true. Had this not happened, we had a speech that was pretty well set that was extremely tough. Now, we have a speech that is more unifying."
Trump Rally Victim Remembered
Meanwhile, the late firefighter was remembered by his family and friends.
"The hatred for one man took the life of the one man we loved the most. He was a hero that shielded his daughters," Dawn Comperatore Schaefer, Comperatore's sister, explained on Facebook. Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania also spoke about the late firefighter.
"Corey was a girl dad — Corey was a firefighter. Corey went to church every Sunday. Cory loved his community. Most especially, Cory loved his family," Shapiro said. He added, "Corey was an avid supporter of the former president and was so excited to be there last night with him in the community."
"His two girls and his wife was everything," Kip Johnston, fire chief and 43-year veteran of the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company, told the New York Post. "...Couldn't ask for a better [firefighter]."
