P’ville Firefighters Remember Slain Colleague
Though it’s been 15 years, Pleasantville firefighters refuse to give up hope that Tom Dorr’s killer will be found and brought to justice.
Firefighters and friends of Dorr, a volunteer Pleasantville fireman, gathered at Graham Hills Park on Monday night to pay tribute to their fallen friend, who was referred to as a gentle giant with a heart of gold.
While the event was to mourn Dorr, former fire chief Tony Rufino said the tone of the memorial had changed to ask for people to come forward with information.
“Tom was a good man,” Rufino said. “The information is in the community. It’s been too many years. I would love to see the murderer brought to justice.”
Dorr, 50, a member of the engine company, had left his Pollywiggle Lane home to walk to the firehouse on Washington Avenue on Jan. 7, 1996. Volunteer firefighters were called in just in case they were needed during the blizzard that was to blanket the region.
However, Dorr never arrived.
The next morning, after the snow subsided, a search party was dispatched and members of the department made the grim discovery in the woods of Graham Hills Park in Mount Pleasant, not far from his home. It was a location Dorr, who worked for the White Plains Water Department, would sometimes trek to go hunting for wild turkey. Dorr’s face and neck were slashed and his head sustained a severe blow, police reports stated. The weapon used in the slaying is believed to have been a knife but it has never been found.
“I’m hoping the people who know will finally come forward,” Rufino said. “People know what happened up there.”
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