PLYMOUTH — Barbara Starr was at least 15 minutes away when she heard that her husband, Plymouth Fire Chief Craig Starr, had suffered a heart attack while taking an injured woman to a hospital.
Starr raced from Plymouth to Tremonton on Christmas Eve, never thinking the heart attack would prove fatal.
"I just broke down and cried," Barbara Starr said about hearing the news that her 44-year-old husband had passed away. "I really thought if it was a heart attack he would pull through."
But he didn't. Firefighters from cities all around Box Elder, Weber and Davis counties were in Plymouth Wednesday to pay their respects and to honor Starr with a Line of Duty procession, led by the Weber County Honor Guard.
"We're all brothers and sisters in this profession of firefighting," said Rich King, executive director of the honor guard.
Firefighters rang a final bell for Starr, who devoted more than a decade as the fire chief, to which, Barbara Starr said, he gave as much time as possible.
The night of Christmas Eve, the couple was heading to Craig Starr's aunt's home for dinner when the chief was called to an emergency.
"When the pager goes off, it doesn't matter what he's doing," Barbara Starr said. "People really relied on him. They looked up to him."
Craig Starr left behind four children and three grandchildren, all from a previous marriage. Barbara said he never met his most recent grandson, who was born in New Mexico last November.
In their free time, the Starrs hiked or camped with Craig doing "all the cooking," Barbara said.
She described his culinary skills with eggs and sausage and how he often grilled hamburgers and steaks on a grill on their balcony at home.
Looking back, Barbara said she only wishes she'd had more time with him.
"We talked about going to Washington to visit his dad. He always said we had plenty of time," Barbara Starr said. "I guess our plenty of time wasn't long enough."
e-mail: lgroves@desnews.com