ASHVILLE, Pa. (WJAC) -- A community is still in mourning after a Cambria County teenager, local firefighter and soldier died after a tragic all-terrain vehicle accident.
Police said Cody Maines, 19, was driving on Bem Road late Friday when he lost control and rolled his ATV.
Below the steady rainfall Sunday afternoon, black drapes, a helmet and coat hung outside the Ashville Volunteer Fire station.
Fire chief Joe Racz said Maines joined the department's junior program when he was 14.
"He was proud to become a senior firefighter when he turned 18,” Racz said, “He earned that and he worked hard at it, as hard as anyone."
Racz said Maines was also extremely proud to join the Army on June 12, 2017. He was assigned to 4th Sustainment Brigade, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson on Dec.19, 2017.
He was home on leave, but that didn't mean his public service was on pause.
"The night he got home from leave he was at his house for five minutes and he left home and came to the fire station because he wanted to be a part of it and always was," Racz said.
Within the first couple hours of him being home, Racz said he went out on a call.
"He was hardworking. He was dedicated,” Racz said. “This place was his life. It really was."
Racz said it's a tragic loss for his family, the fire department and the military.
"He was about to be deployed and he was actually proud of that and happy to be going,” Racz said. “He was set to return to the military this week."
His awards and decorations include: National Defense Service Medal.
“The Stagecoach Battalion is deeply saddened by the loss of PV2 Cody Maines. Cody was relatively new to the Army but already demonstrated he was an excellent Soldier,” Lt. Col. Mike Iannuccilli, 68th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 4th SB, 4th Inf. Div., said. His family has our deepest condolences following this tragic loss.”
"He's certainly going to be missed," Racz said.
The funeral is set for 11 a.m. Wednesday at Gibbons Funeral Home in Ashville.
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