Blue Mass

OLEAN — At the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels Sunday morning, scouts from Boy Scout Troop 617 walked down the center aisle with two folded American flags — the same two flags that were first brought to the church and placed on the altar on the afternoon of Sept. 11, 2001. St. Mary’s officials brought out the flags — as they sometimes do for special occasions like Memorial Day and Veterans Day — for its Blue Mass, which honored local first responders one day before the 16th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. The Rev. Gregory Dobson, St. Mary’s pastor, and the Rev. Patrick Melfi, pastor of St. John’s Roman Catholic Church, gave words of appreciation and a standing ovation was held for the several dozen police officers, firefighters and paramedics, as well as their families, that were in attendance. “This is what we're about: showing appreciation and praying for you,” Dobson told the congregation. Dobson, the Olean Police Department chaplain, thanked first responders for their security at St. Mary’s basilica solemnization Mass in June and said it’s important to “acknowledge heroes.” “Many have said to me, ‘Oh it’s just my job, Father. I’m just an ordinary Joe,’” Dobson said. “When you go to work, you’re always at risk. There's no guarantee you're going to come home. That’s heroic what you’re doing for this community and we are grateful.” While he said it was not his place to tell them how to do their jobs, Dobson did offer first responders some advice: take care of yourself by being physically, mentally and spiritually fit. He also noted that first responders sometimes see “pretty awful things” in their line of work, and it’s crucial they seek support, if they need it. “You need to process that so you don’t bring it home,” Dobson said. Melfi, the Olean Fire Department chaplain, said that “sadly” it’s taken an event like 9/11, in which 414 first responders lost their lives, for people to realize the dangers first responders put themselves in. “Unfortunately that loss of life brings us to that moment where we want to take that time to recognize they put their lives on the line for us so we can have a safe community,” he said. Olean Fire Chief Robert Bell said the anniversary of 9/11 has a special meaning for first responders. “For me, 9/11 shows us we're going inside buildings, we’re doing our job,” he said. “It’s real easy for us to say, ‘It’s our job,’ but it’s a community of first responders, police officers, firemen, where if you need to help, all you need to do is ask for it and a bunch of us show up.” He called Sunday’s Blue Mass “humbling.” “The real heroes are the guys over there fighting those wars and the people down fighting (Hurricanes Harvey and Irma in Texas and Florida),” he said, “but the acknowledgment surely is appreciated, but it’s always there in the community.”