Excerpts from the nwherald.com:
Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection District (LRFPD) Chief Tom Krueger was as devastated as anyone Thursday when he heard that Firefighter/Paramedic Mark Amore had died.
Amore was working another job, doing excavating in Fox Lake when a skid-steer he was operating rolled over a seawall into the water trapping him inside. Amore, a McHenry resident and former member of the McHenry Township Fire Protection District (MTFPD), was taken to Northwestern McHenry Hospital, where he died from the injuries suffered in the accident.
Away from the fire station, Amore was someone friends say enjoyed his free time. He spent many free hours boating in the summer and snowmobiling in the winter months.
“I pretty much envied him because of his lifestyle,” Krueger said. “He was always on his boat, living life to the fullest. He influenced so many people. Everybody knew Amore, he was like the Mayor of McHenry. He loved the fire service. In the fire service, we called him a fireman’s fireman, which is probably the best compliment you can get.”
Mark and his wife Jaimie have a 5-year-old son and a 3-year-old daughter. He followed his father Wayne into the fire service. Wayne was the first full-time fire chief for the McHenry Township Fire Protection District. With his father as McHenry chief and two uncles who also were firemen, Mark was destined to work in the fire service.
Wayne and his wife were in Arizona on Thursday when they heard about the accident. Wayne also lost a brother-in-law in Arizona on Thursday shortly before Mark’s accident.
The wake will be from 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesday at Justen Funeral Home, 3700 Charles Miller Drive in McHenry. As is tradition, MTFPD and LRFPD firefighters will stand guard at the casket 24 hours a day for the entirety of the time it is at the funeral home.
In accordance with Illinois’ stay-at-home order regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, the services will not be open to the public. Those wishing to pay their respects will be allowed to drive by the funeral home, but are asked to not exit their vehicles. The drive-through procedure will be as follows: The casket will be placed in the front vestibule, so people can drive through the carport and park for 15 to 30 seconds, then pull ahead and stop to pay their respects to the family. Workers will take information and addresses for the family.
The funeral will be live streamed at 11 a.m. Wednesday. Individuals and fire apparatus will be allowed to participate in the procession from the church to the cemetery, but people will not be permitted to leave their vehicles.
