1,500 MOURN 'DOZER' FIREFIGHTER REMEMBERED AS BROTHER.

Byline: BRENT HOPKINS

Staff Writer

WEST HILLS -- To his family he was Chuck, the sweet-faced jokester.

To his friends he was Jesse, the macho athlete.

And to his colleagues at Los Angeles Fire Department Station 73 he was Bam-Bam, Little Pasos and Junior, a brother in a dangerous life.

Jesus S. Pasos II, 26, was killed in an off-duty vehicle crash March 4 when his truck hit a light pole.

On Monday, he was mourned and laid to rest by a crowd of more than 1,500, remembered as a man working hard on his own legacy.

"I remember one time in a fire, we all got caught on the wrong side of a 7-foot-tall wooden fence," recalled LAFD Capt. Bill Aaron. "Jesse just lowered his shoulder and, like a bull, punched a hole right through the fence. The rest of us just walked right through after him."

From that day on, his fellow firefighters called Pasos "Dozer," which he added to his lengthy slew of identities. They hailed him as a lively presence in the station, with a limitless appetite for both good food and good humor. He loved to swim, play handball and, above all, break things.

Friends and family packed St. Bernardine's Church in Woodland Hills on Monday, exceeding its capacity. Crisply uniformed firefighters, wearing badges marked with a single black band of mourning, spilled into the courtyard. Their shiny red engines formed a memorial column down Valley Circle Boulevard, two hook-and-ladder trucks extending their cranes in an arch framing a huge American flag outside the church.

Inside, Pasos' helmet and yellow turnout coat, dirtied from use, sat at the altar next to his portrait, a folded flag below.

"His true love was the Fire Department," said his legendary fire captain father, Jesus S. Pasos, 2004's Firefighter of the Year. "It runs in our blood -- it's a beautiful thing. But what makes me so proud was that he pursued it on his own. I didn't have to push him."

He did push his only son to be tough, however, and by all accounts, succeeded mightily. On a whim, the younger Pasos took the grueling test to become a Los Angeles County lifeguard, finishing 13th out of almost 500. Four years ago, he followed his father into the Fire Department, winning the respect and love of his station mates at the Reseda firehouse that became his second home.

"He established his own reputation that I'm sure his father was proud of," said interim Fire Chief Douglas Barry. "He was passionate about his job in the community and he exemplified public service."

As the funeral concluded, Aaron rang a firehouse bell 10 times, signifying a fallen firefighter's last call, as pallbearers carried the casket to a fire engine hearse. The assembled fire crews stood, row after row, white and black hats over their hearts, and said a somber goodbye.

But Pasos, remembered as a lighthearted and fun-loving guy, did not go out on a melancholy note. As the men hoisted his casket, Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky" rang out through the church.

The mourners rose and clapped along, grinning and crying with the rock 'n' roll gospel tune as they bade farewell to their brother.

brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com

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CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Los Angeles fire Capt. Jesus S. Pasos and Eloisa Pasos embrace during a memorial service Monday for their son, Jesus S. Pasos II, who was killed in a car crash earlier this month. Their son had followed in his father's footsteps as a firefighter.

(2) The badge of interim Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Douglas Barry has a black band across it to honor Jesus S. Pasos II, killed in a car crash March 4.

Alex Collins/Special to the Daily News