A high school student in Ohio has combined his passion for community service, scouting, and family tradition by constructing a permanent tribute to first responders on local church grounds. Caleb Brooks, a 15-year-old sophomore at Green High School, recently completed a handcrafted outdoor shrine dedicated to St. Florian, the patron saint of firefighters, at Queen of Heaven Catholic Church in Green.
The project, which serves as Caleb’s Eagle Scout service initiative, was designed to coincide with the solemn remembrance of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Although Caleb was born years after the national tragedy took place, the enduring sacrifice of emergency personnel left a profound impression on the young scout, motivating him to create a lasting sacred space for prayer and reflection.
Situated on the parish’s 18½-acre campus at 1800 Steese Road, the installation required 12 hours of hands-on construction. The finished structure represents the 15th devotional shrine erected across the parish landscape, offering visitors a quiet place to contemplate the courage of emergency personnel who regularly risk their lives in the line of duty.
The shrine honors St. Florian of Lorch, an early Christian martyr revered within the Catholic Church as the protector of firefighters, barrel makers, chimney sweeps, soap makers, and brewers, as well as the patron of Poland and the Austrian city of Linz. Born in approximately 250 A.D. in what is modern-day Austria, Florian served as a prominent commander in the Roman military, where he organized and trained a specialized brigade dedicated exclusively to combating fires.
During the extensive anti-Christian persecutions orchestrated by Roman Emperor Diocletian, Florian openly rebelled against imperial decrees. He refused commands to burn Christian churches, detain believers, or pay homage to traditional Roman deities. After publicly declaring his Christian faith, Florian was subjected to severe beatings and initially condemned to burn at the stake in 304 A.D.
Hesitant to execute him by fire, Roman soldiers instead executed Florian by tying a millstone around his neck and casting him into the Enns River. Fellow Christians subsequently recovered his remains and interred them at an Augustinian monastery near Lorch. His body was eventually relocated to the site of the present-day St. Florian Monastery. His annual feast day on May 4 is now globally observed alongside International Firefighters Day.
Caleb’s tribute carries particular resonance as the nation commemorates the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, which claimed 2,977 lives across New York City, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Among those lost were 441 first responders, including 343 New York City firefighters, 37 Port Authority officers, and 23 New York City police officers who perished while attempting to rescue civilians.
To formally dedicate the memorial, Queen of Heaven scheduled a special Patriot Day prayer service from 4:30 to 5 p.m. on Sept. 11. During the ceremony, the church’s senior pastor, the Rev. David Durkee, offered an official blessing over the new shrine, inviting community members to seek divine protection and fortitude for emergency crews facing ongoing dangers.
For Caleb, the motivation behind the memorial is intimately tied to his own household. His father, Eric Brooks, has served as a professional firefighter with the Stow Fire Department for 18 years. Caleb aims to follow the same career path once he completes his education, inspired by his father’s enduring dedication to emergency response and community protection.
Eric Brooks recalled being an undergraduate chemical engineering student at the University of Akron during the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. He was beginning a co-op assignment at the Goodyear Polymer Center when he walked into an empty hallway and discovered colleagues gathered around a television broadcast showing the burning towers.
While his grandfather, who raised him, had built a career as a chemical engineer, Eric realized his true calling lay in public service rather than technical industry. Having participated in scouting throughout his youth, he had previously explored firefighting coursework and ultimately approached the Stow fire chief—the father of a former high school classmate—promising long-term loyalty if granted a position on the department force.
Emulating his father's dedication, Caleb has amassed an impressive array of scouting and spiritual achievements. He has earned 31 merit badges to date and completed four distinguished Catholic scouting honors: the Parvuli Dei, Alteri Dei, Pope Pius XII, and the rare Pillars of Faith award, which is attained by only roughly 2 percent of Catholic scouts nationwide.
With his major service project now finished, Caleb anticipates securing the official rank of Eagle Scout before the close of the calendar year. He explained that his drive to pursue firefighting stems from an instinctual desire to provide comfort and assistance to individuals during their most difficult and vulnerable life moments.
The Rev. Durkee, who is an Eagle Scout himself, voiced immense pride in Caleb’s accomplishments and underscored the close relationship between faith and scouting. Queen of Heaven established Scout Troop 332 in 2002, and the troop has since guided 60 scouts to the rank of Eagle. Durkee credits his own Eagle Scout project with helping him discern his priestly vocation, viewing scouting as an effective ministry for living out Gospel values.
Durkee noted that the shrine serves as an immediate, visible gesture of gratitude to local emergency crews, including the Green Fire Department located just one minute from the church grounds. Parish leadership hopes the peaceful monument will remain an enduring source of encouragement for first responders and a solemn reminder of those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
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