Bernard Scott made such an impact on his community that his funeral had to be held in the Ganado High School auditorium to fit everyone who wanted to pay their respects.
For three decades, Scott worked as a firefighter in Ganado. 25 of those years were spent as Chief.
He was known to his fellow first responders as a mentor, supporter, and friend. He was known to take new firefighters under his wing and help them start with a solid foundation under them. He was known as someone who enjoyed a bit of mischief. He was also known as a man of great faith, who even at the very end, was worried more about his family and how they would be without him, than himself.
“B took me in at a young age as a probationary firefighter and helped tremendously in molding me into the first responder I am today,” said fellow first responder Ashton Strauss.
“He was the best mentor, a great friend, a loving husband, wonderful dad, and amazing grandpa. I don’t know why this had to happen to one of the best men I’ve had the privilege to know and will probably never understand that part.” At his funeral, Nick Strauss described working with Bernard for twenty years.
“Two solid decades of leadership, commitment and more Bernard moments than I can count,” he said.
Pastor David Segura described Bernard as “A walking example,” saying, “When I saw Bernard I saw exactly what Jesus looked like to me.”
One pastor said at his service, “Now he’s with the first firefighters in the Bible - Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.”
At the end of his service, his fellow firemen took the flag from across his casket, folded it carefully, and presented it to Bernard’s wife, Paula.
A final call from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office ended with “We’ll take it from here. Godspeed, Chief, Godspeed,” just before Bagpipes played as Osmond Bernard Scott was carried out of the auditorium by his fellow firemen, to a vehicle that took him to his final resting place at Ganado Community Cemetery.
