CODY, WYOMING — Friends, family members, and coworkers of smokejumper Tim Hart gathered at the Cody High School football field Saturday to honor the man who died fighting a fire in New Mexico last month.
“My son died, but not in vain, and not for nothing. He died doing a job that he truly loved to do. As his mom, I am sad that I will not see or hear my son again. But I am so very proud of the man. He was doing a job he loved," said Pam Hart, Tim's mother, to the crowd at the service.
Hart, who was 36, started his smokejumping career in 2016, after being hired on to the Grangeville Smokejumpers in Idaho. Hart's Grangeville supervisor, Mike Blinn, said he was a gritty, strong, funny man who got the job done right.
"Honesty and integrity were his most valued attributes. Tim was kind and generous and he was always present in the moment. And above all, he was a friend. He is dearly missed by those who had the good fortune to spend time with him, but he is fondly remembered and he will never be far from our thoughts," Blinn said.
In order to have the job on the Grangeville team, Blinn said Hart slept in the back of his pickup truck in a field behind the base camp. Hart later took a job as a squad leader for the West Yellowstone Smokejumpers.
Blinn said Hart loved the outdoors, duck hunting, crossword puzzles and playing the banjo. He is survived by his mother Pam, his wife Michelle and a sister.
