Slain P’ville Firefighter to Be Remembered at Vigil
As each year passes, a dwindling number of local residents and people connected to the Pleasantville Fire Department remember Tom Dorr Sr. Tonight, his former colleagues at the department and where he worked in White Plains will make sure that no one else forgets.
Last Saturday marked the 16th anniversary of Dorr’s death, a longtime volunteer firefighter who was murdered in Graham Hills Park in Mount Pleasant on Jan. 7, 1996, after he left his Pollywiggle Lane home to walk to the firehouse on Washington Avenue. He was scheduled to join other volunteers on standby duty during a blizzard.
At 7 p.m., as many as 100 firefighters from Pleasantville and neighboring departments as well as employees from the White Plains Water Department where the quiet 50-year-old worked are expected to gather at the park for the annual half-hour vigil to remember an old friend.
“I’m sure people don’t remember 15, 16 years ago,” said Tom Rufino, a former fire chief. “That’s clearly something to keep in the public eye.”
The unsolved murder is still an open case for Westchester County police, who have jurisdiction over the matter, and an open wound for friends at the department. Fire Commissioner John Brooks said it hurts that there has been no arrest, although at one point Dorr’s stepson and wife, Jane Sawyer, were questioned. Shortly after the incident, Sawyer hired a lawyer, which raised eyebrows at the time, but was explained as a way to help the family shield themselves from the prying eyes of the public and press. Later on, she moved to moved to Connecticut and stopped cooperating with police.
For most of the past 16 years there have been no significant breaks to help authorities bring anyone to justice.
“To me it’s amazing that no one has ever been arrested because it happened only a few feet from the middle of town,” Brooks said.
Accounts of the incident had Dorr, a member of the engine company, leaving his home around 5 p.m. that day to walk into town to the firehouse in case he was needed for a call. However, the reliable Dorr, who stood at least 6-foot-5 and was dubbed “The Gentle Giant,” never arrived. The following day police and firefighters searched for Dorr, who was found bludgeoned in the snow in the park, near where he would go hunting for wild turkey. Dorr’s face and neck were slashed and he sustained a severe blow to the head, according to published accounts in the aftermath of his death.
The murder weapon, believed to be a knife, has never been found. There was also the absence of a motive. Much of the physical evidence could not be recovered from the scene because of the heavy snow.
Brooks said the department has maintained remembrances of Dorr inside the firehouse. In the facility’s meeting room there is a wooden cross and a gavel that are dedicated in his memory. The annual memorial ceremony at Graham Hills Park is not only a remembrance but a continued appeal for anyone in the community to step forward with information.
With the passage of time and as new members join the department, there are fewer who knew Dorr, although some occasionally ask about him, Brooks said.
“I think as time passes by the number of people who really think about it is less,” he said.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/