COEUR d’ALENE — After sixth grader Eliana Browne packed down the last shovelfuls of dirt that anchored the Ginkgo tree she planted in Cherry Hill Park on Tuesday, she placed a hand-painted rock at the base of its slender trunk.

On that rock she had painted a favorite Bible verse, Romans 8:18: “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

She calls the tree “Branches of Hope,” a tribute to late battalion chiefs Frank Harwood and John Morrison. The men lost their lives in the June 29 shooting on Canfield Mountain.

The Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy student wanted to honor the firefighters through the school’s yearly Good Deeds project, which calls on students to perform acts of service.

The deaths of the firefighters had “devastated” her, Eliana recalled.

“Firefighters mean so much to our community,” she said.

The tree stands adjacent to Fallen Heroes Plaza, where Eliana hopes visitors will take the time to pause and reflect on the sacrifices of their hometown heroes.

“My hope is that they’ll (find) hope for the future ... that the future will be brighter,” she said.

Several members of the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department joined Browne and her parents to help get the 8-foot-tall tree in the ground.

“We’re grateful,” firefighter Erik Loney said. “We’re never going to forget these guys. It’s nice to know the community is still thinking of us, of them.”

Danielle Browne said her daughter has long been a deeply compassionate, empathetic person — often described by her loved ones as “an old soul.”

“We’re proud of her, of course,” Browne said. “We’ve always been proud of her.” 

    With help from the Coeur d'Alene Fire Department, sixth grader Eliana Browne planted a Ginkgo tree in honor of Frank Harwood and John Morrison at Fallen Heroes Plaza in Coeur d'Alene on Tuesday.
  

    A rock painted by Eliana Browne features the words "Branches of Hope" as well as a Bible verse, Romans 8:18.