70 10-4 Magazine / October 2025 Janice lost her battle with cancer on April 1, 2024. I miss our late night talks when I was trucking, and she was working as a guard at various locations in Reno. I had the distinct honor of going to Kankakee, IL on a beautiful sunny (and cloudy) day to shoot Dylan’s truck and see his favorite fire house – Company Number 2 in Kankakee – which is no longer in service. The doors on this house were originally built for horse and wagon fire apparatus. It is still beautiful and made a nice backdrop for some of the shots we took of Dylan’s Mack bobtail. While we were there, a fire engine happened to be going by, so we asked if they would join us and, after they got permission, we took pictures of their engine with the Mack truck, too. Before we left for our next location, Chief Brian LaRoche stopped by and chatted with Dylan about the changes he had made to the truck since he’d seen it last, and he was kind enough to let me take his picture with the truck. Our next stop was the St. Anne Fire Department station where Dylan works. He was able to pull the trucks out of their bays for the photo opportunity. The engine he usually drives is a Spartan Fire Engine 17. He put on his gear, and I was impressed with how they leave it, so they can get in it quickly. Time is always important when they get a call, as every minute counts. Then, we went back to his yard to hook up the trailer and go around the corner to the First Reformed Church of Wichert, which is where his parents were married, and take more pictures. I think it was a fitting place to take photos and remember everyone this trailer is meant to honor. The truck did work during harvest season for a few years, as Dylan would help family friends Todd and Weston Arsemeau. Now, her life will be going to shows and local parades. When Dylan had her in Louisville at MATS this year (2025), we got to team up with our dear friend Warren Aitken from Australia and shoot it at the Louisville Division of Fire Station 21. Thank you to Warren for allowing us to use some of those pictures for this feature. Dylan has a website where you can buy models of the truck and trailer, shirts and hats (www.merciertransport.com). The profits from these sales go to the Eric Marsh Foundation. This charity was Dylan’s choice after hearing on the news and then seeing the movie “Only the Brave” about the 1st Municipality hotshot team that was overtaken while fighting a mountain fire. Hotshots fight fires like this on the front line, and Type 2 are the clean-up crews afterward. This truck is truly a labor of love, and at the shows and places Dylan takes her, people come up to him with their stories and what seeing this truck means to them and the memories it brings back. They share the appreciation they have for what he has built. Next year, he has been invited to the 911 Memorial at the Glen Ellyn Volunteer Fire Department in Glen Ellyn, IL. We tried to get the truck to the 911 Memorial in New York City to take pictures for a few years, but we never could get all the pieces together. Maybe one day that will happen. In the meantime, let’s remember to honor all firefighters (and first responders), this month, including “Our Fallen Heroes” that gave their lives for others. n
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