Fire Department Holds Celebration Of Life For Norman Firefighter

The Norman Fire Department held a service Tuesday honoring the life of a firefighter who died two weeks ago.

Wilkins' family friends and coworkers filled McFarlin Memorial United Methodist Church in Norman for the memorial.

"The Norman Fire Department continues grieving and processing our loss (Tuesday). Levi Wilkins lived with fervor and joy and did everything in his power to live his adventure," King said in the statement. "The outpouring of love from his fire department co-workers is a testament to the far-reaching inspiration he was and is."

During the service, aspects of his life were remembered, like his love of the outdoors and mountains. They said he was an avid hiker and climber.

Wilkins died in a rock-climbing accident at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge on Sept. 22, said his wife, Emily, on Facebook.

"He was the most incredible husband, father, son, brother and friend," Emily Wilkins said in her post. "Having been together since we were 16, I don’t know how to do life without him and I never wanted to learn."

In addition to being a family man, Wilkins was a cancer survivor.

"It's all surreal that it feels like I might wake up from the dream in the morning and it's all over," Wilkins told News 9 in August 2019 after he was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney cancer.

Despite the advanced stage of the cancer, Wilkins beat it and returned to work. His friends were not surprised by his resilience.

"I don't think cancer realizes who it's picking on. I fully expect him to make a 100% recovery," said fellow firefighter Cody Goodnight in 2019.

Wilkins' wife, Emily, is encouraging family and friends to share fond memories of her husband by posting stories on this website. Emily Wilkins said she hopes to share those stories with her children.

One of the submitted stories mentioned Wilkins dressed as Mr. Clean for Halloween. The poster said even though Wilkins was battling cancer at the time, "he used his illness to its full potential and put smiles on all our faces. It was the bravest thing I’ve seen in a very long time."

The family is asking for donations to an organization that helps cancer patients enjoy outdoor adventures. You can find that link here.