516-227-0700

The Patriot Group

January 01, 2010

Emergency responders earned a place at the center of the national consciousness after their heroic efforts on 9/11/01. One responder who was there at Ground Zero was FDNY Captain Alfredo Fuentes. As Acting Battalion Chief of the FDNY Marine division on that morning, Captain Fuentes was sitting down to his cup of coffee at his desk at the Brooklyn Navy Yard as the first plane hit.

Captain Fuentes ended up buried underneath the rubble of the North Tower that day. Miraculously, he made it out; most of his colleagues did not. His story is told in his book, “American By Choice One Man’s Journey”.

Now retired, Captain Fuentes has dedicated his life to promoting the safety of first responders and the public by passing his vast knowledge and experience to others. To help make it happen, he turned to his friend of a decade, Farrell Fritz Partner, Thomas Killeen. In 1993, Tom helped Captain Fuentes found The Patriot Group, a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting emergency response personnel on a local, national and international level with all aspects of planning for and managing crisis situations in urban settings. Along with other retired and active uniformed first responders, Captain Fuentes presents lectures and workshops on public safety issues at no charge to towns, cities and nations worldwide that would not otherwise have access to the resources necessary to effectively plan for and handle crisis situations.

Tom, along with a colleague from the firm’s Tax practice group, set up the legal foundation for the organization, including its tax-exempt status, corporate governance and bylaws as well as gaining the group licensing to use the FDNY logo in its marketing.

  • Related Practice Areas: Tax