Gary police and fire departments are investigating an early morning fire Thursday that took the lives of a father and son.
John Berry, 94, and his son, Darrick Berry, 47, were found in the house after the fire was extinguished, according to Lt. Dawn Westerfield, Gary Police Department spokesperson. The two died from a combination of severe burns and smoke inhalation, according to the Lake County Coroner’s office.
The department received a call around 4:40 a.m. to the residence in the 4200 block of West 21st Avenue. The cause of the fire is under investigation, Gary Deputy Fire Chief James Stanton said.
Members of the Berry family gathered outside the home Thursday morning as firefighters continued to sift through the rubble. They remembered their father and brother as pillars in their church as well as the community.
“He was honest, straightforward and never met a stranger,” son Ben Berry, of Gary, said of John Berry. “He was a man among men, my hero, my buddy.”
Daughter Sandra Porter, also of Gary, said John Berry chaired the Deacon Board at New Mt. Olive Baptist Church as well as sang in the men’s chorus and remained active in Bible study. And even though the family was close-knit, Darrick and his father were inseparable.
“They were two peas in a pod. Where one was, the other wasn’t far behind,” Porter said. “We all helped with my dad’s affairs, but Darrick was the one who helped him day-to-day. There was no way one would ever leave the other behind.”
Porter said John Berry was married 60 years and not only took care of his own mother, but his mother-in-law, too, often sacrificing his own needs in the process.
“After (his mother-in-law) passed, he finally noticed his legs hurt'” she said. “They were probably hurting the whole time, but he never noticed because he was always busy helping everyone else.”
John Berry’s devotion to the church rubbed off on Ben Berry, who’s now pastor at a church as well. And John Berry’s regard for the all the neighborhood children was legendary.
“There wasn’t a child here he didn’t love, or give a whupping to when they needed it,” Ben Berry said. “He was an exellent, excellent man.”
DaMondre Hayes, John Berry’s 12-year-old great-grandson, said John Berry was always quick to hand him a dollar or two whenever he stopped by. Darrick Berry, “Uncle DB,” meanwhile, was more about dispensing wisdom to DaMondre.
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“One time, I got mad and yelled, and Uncle DB grabbed me and told me to never raise my voice to a grown up,” DaMondre said.
Along with Ben Berry and Sandra Porter, John and Darrick Berry are survived by son and brother, Ronnie Berry, who lives in the Nashville, Tenn., area, Porter said. Funeral arrangements are pending.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.