BIDDEFORD — On Saturday, several hundred people filled St. Joseph’s Church in Biddeford for the funeral Mass of Biddeford native Marc Bellefeuille, who died at age 60.

Firefighters from Biddeford and other fire departments were among those attending the Mass to honor the former Biddeford deputy fire chief, who died unexpectedly on Jan. 30 after suffering a stroke several days earlier.

In addition to a traditional Mass, Bellefeuille was given a firefighter’s funeral. This included transportation of his casket from the church to St. Joseph’s cemetery on a firetruck. Prior to arriving at the cemetery, the firetruck with Bellefeuille’s casket made a stop at Central Fire Station on Alfred Street.

Several Biddeford Firefighters, in their dress uniforms, walked slowly on either side of the truck as it made a U-turn through the station parking lot. Bellefeuille’s family ”“ including his wife, two sons, a daughter-in-law and two grandsons ”“ walked behind the truck.

As the procession made its way through the front lot of the station, a bell was rung in honor of the deputy chief’s 32 years of service in Biddeford.

Bellefeuille had followed in the footsteps of his father when he joined the Biddeford Fire Department’s volunteer call force in 1972. That was the same year he married Annette, his wife of 39 years, said Bellefeuille’s son, Adam.

Marc Bellefeuille eventually became a career firefighter for Biddeford’s department. In 1998, he left Biddeford to become the chief of the Wells Fire Department. Bellefeuille returned to the Biddeford Fire Department in 2003 to be the deputy chief in charge of Emergency Services and Training.

Bellefeuille was well-known to many firefighters around the state through his role as an instructor for the Maine Fire and Education.

In addition, said his son, Bellefeuille served for 23 years as the coordinator of the Maine State Weekend at the National Fire Academy.

Adam Bellefeuille said he didn’t realize how respected his father was or how many lives he touched until he saw the throngs of people greeting his father on his arrival home after his last ride when he retired from the Biddeford Fire Department on April 10, 2009.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.