Indiana nonprofit creating memorial for firefighter killed during shooting at Pennsylvania Trump rally

FISHERS, Ind. — An Indiana nonprofit organization is creating a memorial for a firefighter who was killed in a shooting at a presidential rally for Donald Trump in Pennsylvania.

Buffalo Township Fire Chief Corey Comperatore was struck by gunfire when a shooter attempted to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13. A report from NPR indicates Comperatore was shielding his family from the gunfire when he was killed.

To honor Comperatore’s life, legacy and heroism, Brotherhood Designs is creating two flags made out of the Buffalo Township Fire Department’s retired hoses. One flag will serve as a memorial in Buffalo Township and another will be auctioned off to benefit the Comperatore Family Foundation — an entity that supports organizations Comperatore himself was interested in, like churches, fire and rescue departments and Doberman rescues.

Rob Demlow and Scott Carr, two veteran Fishers firefighters, help run Brotherhood Designs. According to its website, Brotherhood Designs “repurposes retired fire hose to support wildlife care, habitat enhancement and environmental stewardship, reducing waste through (a) Retired Fire Hose Waste Reduction Program.”

The company’s website indicates Brotherhood Designs supports families of fallen first responders by turning retired fire hoses into American flags and other products.

Demlow and Carr said they got the idea to repurpose fire hoses while they were at a fire station one day looking for a project.

“We had some fire hose laying around the fire house one day, and we were looking for a project to do,” Carr said. “We kind of brainstormed and came up with making an American flag out of it.”

Demlow and Carr said their flags are made with fire hose that is no longer suitable for service and plywood backers. The duo indicated that the process of making the flags is painstaking and can take about a month.

Demlow and Carr traveled to Pennsylvania to meet with Comperatore’s widow, Helen, before starting one of their latest projects. During the meeting, they asked her if they could make a legacy flag to honor Comperatore.

“She gave us her blessing to actually make a legacy flag,” Demlow said. “We told her to make sure she had looked at things we’d done in the past. We wanted to make sure that we have Corey’s best interest at heart, and she was gracious enough to give us her blessing.”

After receiving the blessing of Comperatore’s family, Demlow and Carr got to work on the two flags. Demlow and Carr now hope the flags they are creating will help the Buffalo Township community remember and honor Comperatore.

“The biggest thing that we do with these flags is to, again, show who he was to the community, how to treat people, and if that helps her out just at little bit as far as knowing that his legacy is living on, that’s our hope.”

Bob Donaldson and Sterling Hicks contributed to this report.