WILTON — A new thermal imaging camera purchased for the Fire Department was dedicated to former Deputy Chief Kendall Burdin on Tuesday night.

Ann Burdin and her brother-in-law, Capt. Robert Burdick, placed tags reading “In Memory of Kendall Burdin” on the new small camera after Burdick read a poem to remember a man “who lived his life to the fullest and touched so many people during his time here with us.”

“He gave 47 years of his life to making people safe and tomorrow, April 6, would have been his 65th birthday,” he said.

The new camera was partially purchased with the $2,200 donated in memory of Burdin last summer following his death, fire Chief Sonny Dunham said. The department furnished the remaining amount, he said.

The department had purchased a $25,000 camera in 2002 but it was large and cumbersome, Dunham said.

Last year, Burdin was appointed to a committee to look at purchasing a new one. Also serving on the committee were Lt. Randy Barker, firefighter Steve Lakin and Burdick who was a lieutenant at the time.

This new one is small, compact and can be attached to a fireman’s jacket so both hands are free, Dunham said. The new camera defines heat by color and was purchased for $5,000.

Ann Burdin thanked the firefighters, saying her husband’s dying wish was for funds to be put together and the camera purchased. She also thanked the department for its efforts in putting a new roof on her home last November.

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