CHENANGO COUNTY - Timothy Brian Christopherson, lived a full life of community service and dedication to his family. Unfortunately, he passed away on July 3, 2025, at the age of 74.
Calling hours for Christopherson will be held at Fahy's Funeral Home on Thursday, July 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. A funeral service will take place on Friday, July 18, at 11 a.m. at the United Methodist Church in Norwich. All are welcome to attend and celebrate his life.
He was born on February 20, 1951 and was raised in Unadilla before moving to Norwich in the early 1970s.
Christopherson was a cherished member of the community, who dedicated his life to public safety. He enlisted in the United States Navy in 1969, and joined the Norwich Police Department in 1974.
In 1980 he switched careers, becoming a firefighter at the Norwich Fire Department, where he served for nearly 30 years.
"He was a very knowledgeable firefighter in his role, knew what to do in stressful situations, handled them very well," said Norwich Fire Department Chief Jan Papelino, who fought fires and attended trainings with Christopherson during his time as a volunteer firefighter. "He was a mentor to a lot of the guys. Some of the younger guys came in and moved up through the ranks, and he was a mentor to many of them."
On September 11, 2001, Christopherson was attending a front line supervisors class in New York City. When the first tower of the World Trade Center was struck, Christopherson was called to action and spent the following weeks working at Ground Zero.
After his retirement, the fire department remained an important part of Christopherson's life. Papelino said he would often return to the Norwich Fire Department to spend time with the firefighters and share stories about his life, whether it was about his years of service or his love of hunting and fishing.
"He came to the station a lot after he retired, especially recently," said Papelino. "He came here very often in the afternoons and he would just sit around the table in the apparatus bay and basically share hunting stories, fishing stories, old war stories, calls that he had over the years."
Throughout Christopherson's life, his greatest love was for his family. His obituary reads, "Above all else, Tim loved his children, Caylinn and Cody, with his whole heart. They were the center of his world, and everything he did was for them. When his grandchildren, Paisley, Timmy, Evie, and Joey came along, his heart grew even fuller. Being their Pop Pop brought him immense joy and purpose. He adored them beyond words, and his life revolved around making sure they felt safe, loved, and supported. Tim’s greatest pride and legacy was his family, for whom he sacrificed everything without hesitation.
"Tim also shared a deep and meaningful bond with his nephew Brian and held a special place in his heart for Brian’s sons, Zach and Cooper. He cherished the time they spent together, especially their shared love of hunting and fishing."
Papelino said Christopherson often brought his grandchildren down to the station, and his own love for community service was passed down to his children.
His son joined the Norwich Fire Department about five years ago, and his daughter-in-law volunteers as a firefighter with the department. She also worked for Chenango County as an EMT before recently becoming a paramedic. Additionally, one of Christopherson's nephews works as a firefighter with the City of Binghamton.
Papelino said Christopherson's presence at the fire house will be greatly missed by all who work there.
"The fire department family is a pretty close-knit group, and he’s certainly going to be missed here by all the people that he mentored," he said. "Some of the junior firefighters got to meet him and just sat around the table and listened to some of his stories. So those kinds of things are going to be missed a lot by everybody here."
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Tim’s memory, an organization close to his heart.