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- Portland Fire & Rescue has learned of the passing of Retired Firefighter and Public Information Officer Neil Wendell Heesacker on October 9, 2016.
Neil W. Heesacker was born in Forest Grove, Oregon on November 30, 1940.
Firefighter Heesacker was hired in 1966 by the City of Milwaukie Fire Department. Then in 1968 he was hired by Multnomah County Fire District #10. In 1985 Fire District #10 merged with the Portland Fire Bureau. At that time, he was assigned to the Assistant Public Information Officer. He was promoted to Public Information Officer, for the Portland Fire Bureau, on December 1, 1995 and held that position until retiring November 30, 2003.
The funeral service is scheduled for Friday October 14th at 11:00 at the Visitation Catholic Church located at 4285 NW Visitation Rd. Forest Grove, OR, 97106. A reception will be held immediately following the church service at the Visitation Parish Hall.
Following the reception, a formal funeral procession will then proceed to the St. Francis Cemetery located at 39000 NW Mountaindale Rd. Banks OR.
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Neil W. Heesacker, age 75, a lifelong resident of the Forest Grove community, succumbed to pancreatic cancer October 9, 2016 at his home in Forest Grove, Oregon surrounded in love by his family.
Neil was born on November 30, 1940 in Forest Grove, Oregon the son of Lambert and Julia (Spiering) Heesacker. Neil was raised on the family farm and received his high school diploma from Banks High School. With a mechanical mind, he also studied course work at Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls, Oregon and Clark Community College in Vancouver, Washington.
He married Joanne Muir on March 16, 1963 and began having a family. Neil yearned to continue farming in his fathers footsteps, but was encouraged by his father-in-law to become a firefighter as a more secure way to support his family. Neil spent 37 years working in fire service. He is most known for his role as the Public Information Officer for the Portland Fire Bureau for nearly three decades. He was seen and heard regularly on the local news channels and in the media for talking about details of the biggest fires and disasters in the area. His son and 2 grandsons have followed in his firefighter footsteps. Neil drove into Portland for work every day, but always returned to the same Forest Grove home he and Joanne have lived in for 51 years. Neil and Joanne celebrated their fifty-third wedding anniversary this past March in Lake Havasu, Arizona where they liked to visit every winter since his retirement in 2004.
Neils five greatest passions were his family, his 1966 Chevy Impala that he meticulously maintained and restored; his tractors, helping local farmer Dave Vanasche harvest crops every summer and gardening. Neil took great pride in keeping a clean and tidy home, yard and garage.His yard was featured a number of times on the Forest Grove Garden Tour. He proudly displayed a sign that says If you cant blow it, mow it or clean it…its not important. He also spent countless hours offering a helping hand to his children, a neighbor or a friend in need. Nobody was a stranger to Neil. He loved to laugh and make people smile, and he always had a joke or two ready at all times.
Neil was preceded in death by his parents and brothers Leon, Allen, Myron and John.
Survivors include his wife, Joanne Heesacker of Forest Grove, Oregon; daughter and son-in-law, Susie and Markus Ehrich of Berlin, New Jersey; son and daughter-in-law, Scott and Teresa Heesacker of Newberg, Oregon; daughter Shelly Heesacker and her partner Dr. Wendy Vannoy of Forest Grove, Oregon; and daughter and son-in-law, Sherry and Thomas Bosch of Eugene, Oregon. He is also survived by one brother, four sisters, eight grandchildren and one great grandson. He was dearly loved by all who knew him and will be greatly missed!
The family suggests remembrances to the David Campbell Memorial Fund for fallen firefighters, or in the spirit of Neil, to do something nice for your neighbor just because its the right thing to do.
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1940 - 2016 (75 years)