After a nearly-40-year career, Battalion Chief Bart Joseph closed out his final shift with the Rochester Fire Department Tuesday morning.

He shared one last cup of coffee in the place he's called home with a brotherhood he's come to love.

"Just leaving, knowing I’m not going to ride on a truck, that’s the hard part," said Joseph. "Coming into work, you sit at the coffee table and that’s where a lot of training takes place. When the guys and women start talking there’s always a story that comes up."

Joseph most notably remembered a fire on High Street that took the lives of a woman and her two children, and left several firefighters injured.

“I remember going in on the second floor and watching the color of the smoke and heat. They opened the window, and you can see the heat coming out of the window,” Joseph added.

The next day, the family visited their quarters to offer thanks for their efforts.

“I thought, 'man, they really humbled us.' Everything they were going through, the grief the loss they’ve had," Joseph said. "They took time to come out and thank us for what we did. I really think that humbled us, or for me, it was very humbling.” 

Two other firefighters also retired on Tuesday. Lt. John Grieco and firefighter Tom John both dedicated 30 years to the Rochester Fire Department. Grieco was most recently involved in a four-alarm fire in March that left him trapped in a Monroe Avenue apartment building.

John became emotional after realizing it was time to say goodbye.

“This is the end and something you’ve been striving for your whole life, living your dream, basically, and now it’s over," Johnson said.