Firemen pay tribute to fallen solider

GETZVILLE, N.Y. (WIVB) - The Getzville Fire Department saluted Army Staff Seargeant William "Billy" Wilson, III on Labor Day, a Williamsville native who chose a career that put him in the path of danger.

Billy was killed last March at a checkpoint in Afghanistan. On Monday, firefighters planted a tree and presented a plaque in his honor.

Asst. Chief Scott Preston said, "May the planting of this tree serve as a living memorial and bring peace and comfort to you and your family in years to come."

Bill Wilson, Billy's father, said, "This is just tremendous. It's going be here for a long time...real long time, even after we go it's still going to be in memory of Billy."

The tree stands in front of Williamsville North High School, where Billy graduated in 2003. He was member of the department's Explorer Program and would've been a Getzville firefighter had he not gone off to serve in the Army.

MORE | Hundreds came out to pay their final respects to the fallen soldier

Billy's friend, Mark Jacobs, said, "Billy did it for all the right reasons that you'd want someone to go over there. He did it because he knew he wanted to help people, because he knew that there were men that needed to be led and he was truly a leader of men."

Another friend, Chris Lyles, said, "Always ready to help someone else and if you needed someone to call, he was the one to call. He was great friend."

Friends say he always wanted people to make the most of the present, and this was a weekend for him. A car painted in Billy's honor actually won the Clarence Center Demolition derby this weekend. One of the many ways Billy is remembered for his sacrifice is on t-shirts that read, 'Home of the Free, Because of the Brave.'

His mother, Kim Wilson, said, "Our freedom isn't free. You know, we sometimes take for granted our everyday life and these men and women put their lives on the line all the time so we can live the lives that we live."

This was soldier who loved kids even made a difference to the children in Afghanistan.

"He'd fix their toys if they were broken. He brought them soccer balls. The kids missed him over there because Bill wasn't there to play and give them stuff and enjoy life," Bill Wilson said.

The tree planted in Billy's name is right next to a tree planted in memory of Jonathan Cote, a security contractor who was abducted and killed in Iraq four years ago. He, too was, a graduate of Williamsville North.