Lawton Says Goodbye to David Taylor, the Wildlife Officer Who Went Back Into the Fire

David Hardin Taylor could have kept moving. On Aug. 29, the federal wildlife officer was helping evacuate people as the Railroad South Fire pushed through the Indiahoma area. Instead of staying clear, he went back for a disabled Navy veteran named Vandell Nauni. Taylor, 38, died in that effort. Nauni survived.

Taylor’s service record reads like a career most people couldn’t imagine: twenty years in the U.S. Navy, five deployments, and the rank of Senior Chief Petty Officer in the Reserve. He worked at wildlife refuges in New Mexico and Oklahoma before coming home to this corner of the state, and on Wednesday his funeral at First Baptist Church in Lawton drew hundreds of first responders from federal, state and local agencies. From there, a procession moved along Interstate 44 and U.S. 62 to Fort Sill National Cemetery in Elgin, where he was laid to rest.

He leaves behind his wife Shayna, three sons, and his parents Gary and Melody Taylor. His father said his son believed no man should be left behind, and that he proved it. Lawton knows what that kind of service looks like, and now it knows what it costs. Have you ever had a first responder step up for your family during an emergency? Tell us about it in the comments.