MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The funeral for Lt. Rodney Eddins was held at Bellevue Baptist Church.
Eddins died last Saturday after collapsing while battling a house fire on Marigold Lane in the Westwood area.
“Lt. Eddins was a great man, a great individual, a man of dignity and integrity, one that we truly loved, and we are going to truly miss him,” said MFD Public Information Officer Lt. Wayne Cooke.
Fire Director Gina Sweat presented Eddins’ wife with his badge during the service.
Eddins’ uncle, Pastor Larry Eddins, delivered the eulogy, saying, “No one could talk him out of it. No one could get him to say, ‘No, no, that is dangerous,’ go do something else. He had it within his heart that he wanted to be a firefighter.”
Fellow firefighters told WREG they remember Eddins as a mentor with a smile on his face.
Bellevue estimated that about 1,000 people attended.
After the service, the funeral procession went to the West Tennessee Veterans Cemetery.
Eddins had been with Memphis Fire for 30 years.
He leaves behind a wife and daughter.
Watch the full funeral here.
