Brigitte Stelzer
When the smoke cleared, he’d touched thousands of lives.
A heroic firehouse chaplain who died of 9/11-related pancreatic cancer was honored with a plaque at a heartfelt ceremony in Brooklyn Friday — where pals recalled his uniquely funny brand of “spiritual guidance.”
FDNY friends praised Rev. Monsignor John Delendick of Ladder 170 in Canarsie — who buried hundreds of fallen firefighters over nearly three decades — for channeling humor to help them through life’s darkest moments.
“When my dad had a serious stroke, he was there,” Fire Deputy Commissioner Mark Guerra said at the packed ceremony. “When he passed away, Monsignor was there to say the funeral Mass.
“He could poke a little fun at himself, but he touched people in a way that was so special and so, so personal,” he added as he choked up.
“That’s why I love him so much. I miss him every day.”
Others said the man of God had a “calming” presence — and a playful spin on piety.
“With his quick wit and sharp tongue, he easily blended into the department and with the members, and he was a favorite among them. He knew how they talked, how they thought, and what they valued,” said Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker. “He was a friend and a confidant.”
Delendick, who joined the FDNY as a chaplain in May 1996, died on Nov. 23, 2023, after battling cancer linked to the World Trade Center rescue on 9/11.
On Sept. 11, 2001, he rushed to ground zero shortly before the second tower collapsed to help smoke-eaters cope with crushing grief and stress.
He later officiated countless funerals of firefighters who died of 9/11-related illnesses after inhaling toxic chemicals at the terror attack site.
On Friday, roughly 100 people gathered at the firehouse in Carnasie to celebrate Delendick’s life as a gleaming plaque in his honor was unveiled.
It reads: “[He] bravely served this department through his spiritual guidance and compassion.”