View more photos from the memorial at Spotted

The helicopters approached slowly, buzzing overhead as the sun shone down brilliantly on the hundreds of people who lined the sidewalk outside First Baptist Church in Bryan.

Providing an air escort, the aircraft hovered in the sky as scores of emergency response vehicles -- their lights flashing in tribute -- and other cars and trucks steadily made their way to the church.

As the law officers and emergency responders arrived, they quietly began to line the driveway leading from the building entrance to the street, where two fire trucks sat with their ladders extended to form an arch from which a giant U.S. flag was suspended.

The parking lot was quiet, save for the mournful sound of bagpipes and drums and the slow shuffle of boots against the pavement as PHI crew members from around the state solemnly marched to the sanctuary.

"A hero is one who is recognized by their courage, admired for their leadership, embraced for their inner strength and respected for their nobility," said Covenant Family Church Pastor Danny Green, who presided Wednesday over a memorial service for three members of a Med 12 flight crew and the patient they were trying to help, all of whom were killed when their helicopter crashed earlier this week.

"The very simple act of caring is heroic."

PHI Air Medical pilot Charles "Wayne" Kirby, nurse Jana Bishop and paramedic Stephanie Waters were flying patient David Disman from Huntsville to Houston when Med 12 -- the air ambulance stationed at Bryan's Coulter Field -- crashed in Walker County.

It remains unclear what caused the early Sunday morning crash. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating, but officials said it could be up to a year before a final report is made public.

On Wednesday, hundreds of grieving friends, family and fellow emergency service workers -- including many clad in PHI's trademark black and yellow flight suits -- converged at the church to pay tribute to the four. The procession, which began at Coulter Field and led to the church, was so long that it took nearly an hour to get everyone to the church and seated inside.

"The loss of life -- anyone's life -- diminishes my own," Dr. Jay Kovar, medical director for PHI, said as he spoke during the service. "Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It's the transition that's difficult."

Kovar said his mind seemed stricken with disbelief at the news of the crash. Such a tragic accident prompts the question: Why? But it also causes friends and family to lament the loss of experience and dedication, skill and beauty that had been exuded by the three members of the flight crew, he said.

The trio, he said, were "happy, bright poignant parts of my life." Kovar said he wondered how he could honor people who made his life feel so full with just simple words.

But the medical director said he realized it was their very memory that would best honor them. Rather than trap him in the past, those memories propel him forward, he said, describing the peace he feels when he closes his eyes and thinks of them.

"In my soul, they will be with me. In my heart, they will reside forever beautiful, beloved and immortal," Kovar said. "I wish them peace."

Throughout the service, friends and family members remembered the three members of the flight crew as people who had dedicated their lives to serving others.

Charles 'Wayne' Kirby

Kirby, 63, of Bryan fell in love with flying while in the military and went on to work for 32 years as a PHI pilot, said Lt. Ralph Buentello, who spoke Wednesday on behalf of the Kirby family. Until Sunday, his flying record had been spotless.

The beloved father and grandfather, who was referred to as Paw-Paw, enjoyed riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycles and hunting deer, Buentello said. But Kirby had no greater hobby than the love he had for his family and his grandchildren.

His last day at home, Buentello said, was spent with them. He took the grandchildren to a sailboat workshop and then out to lunch before returning home, where they played on a giant inflatable water slide. Family members still aren't sure if Kirby bought the slide for his grandchildren or himself, Buentello joked.

"His grandchildren will treasure the memories of Paw-Paw Wayne," Buentello said.

Stephanie Waters

Vaughn Hamilton, who works with Marble Falls Area EMS, spoke for the family of Waters, 27, of Cedar Park. The exuberant woman was just 15 when she first rode on an ambulance with her mother, who is a paramedic in Marble Falls, he said, noting that the teen quickly began her basic emergency medical technician training despite being too young to take the exam.

Later, he said, Waters and her mother worked on the ambulance as partners.

Hamilton said he remembers watching his friend sprint to the ambulance at the sound of the alarm. And if there was a children's health fair, he joked, Waters was there, showing 10-year-olds how to intubate a stiff mannequin head. But her demeanor changed when she neared a patient. Her tone softened and her eyes fixed on the person in need, he said.

"Stephanie absolutely loved the work she did," Hamilton said, recalling how she once told her mother that she was living her dream. "You guys know that."

Jana Bishop

Bishop of Magnolia was just 29 when she died, but she lived a complete life during those three short decades, said Dr. Jill Beatty, a friend who spoke on behalf of Bishop's family. Bishop worked as a medic and nurse. She traveled across the United States and to China. She had gone scuba diving, sky diving, deep sea fishing and hiking in the mountains. And she was set to get married in just four months.

Beatty, who was to be a bridesmaid in the wedding, said the two first met when Bishop was a nurse at the hospital where they worked. Even then, Beatty said, Bishop was wonderful at her job. Beatty said Wednesday that she always will remember her friend's perfect smile and the sincerity behind it and her laugh -- sometimes a quiet giggle and other times a triumphant belly laugh. Beatty said she also will remember Bishop for her honesty and determination.

"Like all good things, she left us wanting more," Beatty said quietly. "I cannot explain the depth of my sorrow, but I can try to live as she would have wanted me to."

David Disman

Friends and family also remembered Disman, the 58-year-old patient killed in the crash. Though he could have a gruff exterior, the patriarch was a wise and compassionate man who would give the shirt off his back if someone needed it, said the Rev. Tim Owens of First Baptist Church, reading from a letter by the Disman family.

Disman, who served in Vietnam and later became a corrections officer, chose to live a simple life focused on family, Owens said. And though a failed back surgery left him disabled and certain to end up in a wheelchair, he still was walking when God called him home, his family wrote.

Family members recalled Disman's last moments, during which they said he made a feeble attempt to joke with Bishop even while she and Waters could so easily sense the pain he was feeling.

"He was a light in all of our worlds," Owens said, quoting the letter, as he stressed that Disman's light and the light from the three members of his flight crew would live on in those who knew them. "The world is a darker place in their absence."

Spirit of Med 12

More than five dozen flower arrangements lined the church altar, where a dozen or so people took turns Wednesday paying tribute to their friends and co-workers. Large photos of Disman, Kirby, Bishop, Waters and the black and yellow Med 12 helicopter were placed on easels at the foot of the altar.

Late in the service, a 15-minute photo montage set to music displayed various photos of the four, as well as Med 12.

Owens encouraged the crowd to turn to their faith for comfort as he reminded them that nothing -- neither death nor life, angels nor demons, present nor future -- could separate them from God's love. During such tragic times, Owens said, it is common to wonder, "Where is God?" But God and his love were among the crowd that very day, he said.

"God is our refuge and our strength," he said. "The Lord Almighty is with us. He's our fortress."

Near the close of the service, Med 12 Flight Paramedic and Medical Supervisor Billy Rice presented flight suits to the families of Kirby, Bishop and Waters. His face red with emotion, he unexpectedly took to the podium and told the crowd that, though he didn't know when, Med 12 would someday be back in service.

"Before today, I thought Med 12 was the people in the first two rows up here," said Rice, pointing to fellow members of the PHI flight crew. "But I think everybody can see Med 12 is this whole community that is here today."

• Holly Huffman's e-mail address is holly huffman@theeagle.com.

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Posted by: Grateful Brazos Valley Community Member On: 6/12/2008

Comment Title: We are here...we are here....
Mr. Rice: Your comment that "Before today, I thought Med 12 was the people in the first two rows up here," said Rice, pointing to fellow members of the PHI flight crew. "But I think everybody can see Med 12 is this whole community that is here today." please don't forget all of us who were unable to attend and are keeping you in our prayers for all you do for those desperately in need of emergency assistance. I thank God for their/your assistance transporting my micropremmie niece to Scott & White Temple on May 28th. God Bless you all and what you do...we truly appreciate everyone of you.

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