Buck was my cousin. We were close in age, only separated by 1.5 years. We grew up together as we went to the same schools and lived only a few miles from one another. Our large extended family was very close and spent a lot of time together. We played sports together and played together on the same men’s softball team for many years. when I joined the Sudlersville VFC in 1988, Buck was my training Officer and he taught me very well. He was full of experience and knowledge and transferred all of that to me very effectively. The night of 4/15/2009 was one of the worst nights of my life. I had just returned home earlier that day from a family trip to Kansas City, MO. I live across the street from the firehouse and I started noticing lots of cars and activity at the FH for a Wednesday evening. I logged on to FB which had not been around that long and I had only recently joined and I saw a post from a resident of Sudlersville that said “RIP Buck Clough”. Buck’s Father, my Uncle Buck, was also called Buck Clough and it was known throughout the family that Uncle Buck had some health issues so I called over to the FH and one of my SVFC brothers answered and I asked if something had happened to Uncle Buck. The phone went silent for what seemed like a long time and then he responded with “Danny, come over to the FH right now. You need to be here with us!” I was confused so I asked “What’s going on?” He said, “It wasn’t Uncle Buck, it was Little Buck.” (‘Little Buck’ is the name we all used to differentiate Buck from his Father). I sad “What are you talking about?” “Buck died responding to call earlier tonight”. I dropped the phone and fell to the floor, literally, like you see in the movies. It felt like someone hit me in the stomach, chest and head with a battering ram all at the same time. The next couple of weeks were a blur. I had to take some time off of work as I tried to come to grips with what had happened. As you can expect, it had an immediate effect on our large extended kin and our Fire Company family. My Grandfather, who had been extremely close with Buck, started going down hill immediately after the accident and 8 months later, he died of health problems that we feel were exacerbated by a broken heart. For me, I started having intense, troubling dreams that always included Buck. Before long, the insomnia started and my participation in Fire Company activities started to decline as it became very painful to always be reminded of that terrible event every time I entered the firehouse. I am in awe and have great respect and admiration for my SVFC brothers and sisters who were able to stay so active and dedicated, continuing to serve and protect our community after our Company had experienced such a tragedy. For me, it became a source of great pain which resulted in a break of several years. It has been 13 years this past April since that terrible tragedy. As they say, time heals wounds, and it has gotten easier to look across the street at the FH and I have become a fully active member once again. Now, being around my fellow members who were there during that terrible ordeal brings a real source of comfort and added comradery and when I stop to look at Buck’s memorial gear locker or see one of the Chief Buck Clough memorial decals in the back window of one of the vehicles, I think of Buck and all of the great times we had, all of the lessons he taught me and adventures we had. His memory is filled with love, reverence and great respect and I know he would want me to be back active and serving with his beloved SVFC. I think of him every day and although it gets easier with time, not a day goes by that I don’t think of him and remember what he means to me and continues to mean to the SVFC and the community. I love and miss you, Brother. Rest easy and know that we have got it under control for now. I am still looking for the water hammer. I’m sure I’ll find it one day.