YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community - [News]Wake for Staten Island boy killed in fire

picture of him & yorkie here
http://blog.silive.com/firstglance/2..._and_more.html

by Staten Island Advance Tuesday December 18, 2007, 4:57 PM

Advance photo/Irving Silverstein
The 9-year-old boy who died trying to save his pets as a fire tore through his Staten Island home was laid to rest today in a white casket with a stuffed lizard and several soccer jerseys resting nearby.

Family and friends of Thomas Monahan, of Prince's Bay, paid their respects today during his wake at Bedell-Pizzo Funeral Home in Tottenville.

The boy was killed when he ran upstairs to save his Yorkshire terrier and lizard during the blaze at his families home on 49 Princewood Ave. His parents and younger sister were safely outside when the father realized his son was trapped.

Fire investigators believe it was a faulty extension cord in the basement ceiling that sparked Sunday's deadly blaze in the 1920s-vintage Tudor

THOMAS MONAHAN, 9
Kind beyond his years, 4th-grader loved animals
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
By JOHN ANNESE
ADVANCE STAFF WRITER
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- At just 9 years old, Thomas (Tommy) P. Monahan V was a dedicated environmentalist who loved animals and had an insatiable curiosity about nature.

Whether it was checking under rocks for salamanders or racing to see a snake caught by one of his friends, the Prince's Bay youth was steadfast in his passions. So much so, that instead of saving money for trading cards or video games, Tommy collected his spare cash in a coffee can labeled "Help Save Dogs and Cats -- Animal Hosting Center ASPCA."

He didn't spend it on anything. That's the kind of kid he was," said his grandfather, Thomas P. Monahan.

Tommy, a fourth-grader at PS 36 in Prince's Bay, died early Monday morning at Staten Island University Hospital, Ocean Breeze, succumbing to injuries he suffered in a fire at his home on Sunday night.

Tommy enrolled every year in an "Earth camp" program sponsored by the Staten Island Museum. He relished leading fellow campers as they hunted for Native American artifacts, fossils, snakes, frogs and horseshoe crabs.

He would often volunteer for environmental cleanup work for the Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay and Richmond Valley Civic Association, and he held animal charities near and dear to his heart. His cherished his Yorkshire terrier, Sophie, who also died in the fire.

Tommy learned his love of nature from his parents. "They just raised him to respect the environment. He had a heart of gold for animals," said his grandmother, Patricia Monahan. "He respected them and knew everything there was to know about them."

Tommy played soccer in an under-11 recreational league for St. Joseph-St. Thomas R.C. Parish. He also had played for an under-9 Staten Island United travel soccer team, his family recalled. Tommy also loved watching World War II movies and military movies in his spare time.

"Our little angel Tommy was the most curious, adventurous little boy who loved the animals and earth with such vigor," his grandparents said in a handwritten statement. "The first thing Tommy did when he came to our house was lift every rock in the yard in search for salamanders.

"Grandma will miss his loving hugs and healthy appetite, and Grandpa will miss reviewing their favorite coins and answering his nature questions, and his trips to Lemon Creek."

Tommy's family members are asking mourners to send donations in his name to the Staten Island Animal Care Center at 3139 Veterans Rd. West, Staten Island, N.Y. 10309.

"He wanted to take care of homeless cats and dogs," his grandfather said.

In addition to his paternal grandparents, surviving are his parents, Maria and Thomas P. Monahan III ; a stepbrother, Kevin T. McCue; a stepsister, Ashley E. McCue; a sister, Gabrielle G. Monahan, and his maternal grandmother, Gloria Badalamenti.

The funeral will be Thursday from the Bedell-Pizzo Funeral Home, Tottenville, with a mass at 11 a.m. in St. Thomas Church, Pleasant Plains. Burial will follow in Moravian Cemetery, New Dorp.