VIDEO: As part of the Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters Associations’ annual conference, fire and rescue members across Nebraska gathered in Kearney on Sunday to remember their fallen friends and family. In 2017, 42 members of firefighters, EMS and auxiliary passed away. Whether it is on the job or after hours, volunteer fire and rescue teams willingly risk their lives to save those in the community. Matt Fitzgerald from the Nebraska Firefighters Museum tells NTV News the bond between team members becomes more like a brother or sisterhood. “You might be from one side of the state but you’ll know somebody from the other side of the state. You’ll keep in touch, go to these conferences, go to fire schools and stuff like that, a lot of friends in the service itself so it’s basically a big family,” said Fitzgerald.