Slain Pleasantville Firefighter Remembered at Annual Vigil
By Anna Young
Frigid, bone-chilling temperatures didn’t stop Pleasantville firefighters from gathering once again at Graham Hills Park Monday night to remember their former comrade Thomas Dorr.
Friends, co-workers and first responders from numerous municipalities including the Bedford Hills Police Department, Westchester County police, the Pleasantville Ambulance Corps and the White Plains Police Department, gathered in front of a tree planted in Dorr’s memory for the 15-minute ceremony. It’s been 21 years since Dorr was found murdered during a blizzard on Jan. 7, 1996.
“We always hope someone will step forward,” Pleasantville Fire Department Commissioner John Brooks said solemnly. “But there’s never new evidence.”
Dorr was near his Pollywiggle Road home feeding wild turkeys on the day of his murder.
The 50-year-old who worked for the White Plains Water Department planned on walking to the Washington Avenue firehouse to join other volunteers on standby during a blizzard, but never made it. When firefighters learned Dorr was missing, they began a search finding his body the next morning, beaten and stabbed, buried under two feet of snow.
Despite speculation that Dorr’s wife, stepson and son’s friend may have been involved, Dorr’s murder remains unsolved now more than two decades later, and is one of two homicides in the village that are open cases. In October 2014, Linda Falkoff was stabbed to death in her Grandview Avenue home and police have yet to make an arrest in that case.
While many pray Dorr’s killer will be brought to justice, county police confirmed this week there is no additional evidence on the case.
“Even though Tom’s death was tragic and untimely, his life also continues to speak and for that reason we continue to gather together to remember him and call to justice, but also to follow his example in service to the community,” said Pastor Paul Egensteiner of Emanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church in Pleasantville.
Dorr had served with the volunteer fire department in Pleasantville since 1979.
Despite all the years since his death, Brooks noted that each year more people turn out to remember Dorr and pay their respects to the mild-mannered, determined team member of their small community.
“We’ve been gathering here for many years to keep the call for justice alive, to let the community know that we haven’t forgotten and the fact that this is not solved is irritating at best, and frustrating and maddening at worst,” Egensteiner said. “Every one of you gathered here tonight are a wonderful testimony to the fact that community means something and that Tom’s life continues to make a difference.”
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