Rockaway street named for fallen firefighter
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Beach 129th Street and Newport Avenue in the Rockaways was co-named Wednesday for Timothy Klein, a local firefighter who was killed fighting a blaze last April. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach
By Ryan Schwach
More often than not, street co-namings are small affairs with a few dozen people standing on a corner, honoring a late and influential member of their neighborhood. However, the ceremony for fallen firefighter Timothy Klein’s street co-naming was different.
A lifelong resident of the Rockaways in Queens, Klein died last April fighting a blaze in Canarsie and was remembered on Wednesday as members of the community and the FDNY renamed Rockaway’s main commercial block, Beach 129th Street and Newport Avenue, in his honor.
“This block has a special place in his heart, he grew up on it,” said Klein’s younger sister, Erin Klein, on Wednesday. “For it to now bear his name is an honor.”
The street, which his friends and fellow firefighters described as “the core of Rockaway” is Western Rockaway’s main commercial strip.
A 31-year-old, six-year vet of the FDNY before his death, Klein was well known in the close knit Rockaway community. A lifelong resident of the Belle Harbor section of the peninsula, Klein was known as a caring and compassionate man and firefighter, a flag bearer at the annual Sept. 11 memorial ceremony and a regular face at the local volleyball and summer basketball tournament, the latter of which also now bears his name.
“Today we're here to honor a hero, not for how he left this world, but for how he lived every day,” said City Councilmember Joann Ariola, who brought the co-naming to the council chamber. “Timothy Klein was more than just a firefighter. While I never had a chance to meet him, from the outpouring of support I've seen across this peninsula and beyond, I know that he was a great son, brother, friend and human being.”
Ariola spoke of his courage and selflessness as a firefighter, and the enduring legacy he has had on the community.
“Through his courage and selflessness, Timothy Klein has inspired all of us to do better, to be better and to do more and live our lives to the fullest,” she said. “I was honored to bring this legislation to the floor of the City Hall chambers that would ensure that Timothy's name would be seen every single day here on Beach 129th Street for generations to come.”
His death last April shook the Rockaways, and his funeral brought thousands to the same block that was renamed in his honor Wednesday, an event which itself brought a few hundred locals, firefighters and elected officials.
“I have been to way too many firefighter funerals in [the past] 30 years,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. “It's the reason I still come out, because maybe after 30 years, I'm getting a little nostalgic. And after so many years, it never ceases to amaze me that when we are mourning a public servant like Tim Klein, that there is a public atmosphere to it. This is a man who we always say runs into burning buildings when other people are running out.”
“Timothy Klein will always be remembered here in the Rockaways because today we named a street after him, and generations to come will ask who that firefighter was and what he was to our community,” she added.
Although Klein is remembered by locals, officials and FDNY brass, he is also mourned by his family. His three sisters, mother and father – a retired firefighter – were all there for the co-naming ceremony.
“My family has been witness to an overwhelming amount of kindness and generosity,” said Erin Klein. “And with that comes the motivation to not only live by Tim's example of selflessness and humility, but to also pay it forward so that others may see this ripple effect and feel that ever present impact my amazing brother left on this world.”
