WEST PATERSON - The Fire Department will lose one of its newest volunteers to the war in Iraq.

Israel Tolentino Jr., 18, of Paterson, a corporal in the Marine Corps Reserve, will report to Fort Dix on Jan. 7 and be shipped to Iraq days later. He has volunteered with the Fire Department since May 2003, when he joined Rifle Camp Fire Company 3 as a junior firefighter.

When he said he was going to Iraq, I was shocked," said Fire Chief Joseph Macones. "He's such a young fellow, but I think he's smart and he will take care of himself.

"He was an exception because he didn't even live in the municipality and he volunteered to help us out," the chief said.

Tolentino was one of the first young people in the department's Junior Firefighters Program, which accepts volunteers ages 16 to 18. When he turned 18 in September, Tolentino became a full-fledged member of the company.

Thanks to the influence of his uncle, Manny Rivera, a full-time firefighter in Paterson, Tolentino long aspired to become a firefighter. But Rivera's influence did not end there. He enlisted in the Marine Corps more than a decade ago, and now Tolentino will join the war in Iraq.

"That was kind of why I chose it," Tolentino said of his uncle's experience. "That helped me out big time."
Tolentino, who leaves today for Puerto Rico to visit family, is preparing mentally for combat. He was packed on Dec. 9, two days after receiving word to report to Fort Dix.

E-mail: kovac@northjersey.com