Friends and family paid tribute Sunday to a 29-year-old firefighter from Baldwin who recently lost his battle with lung cancer.

Baldwin firefighters gathered at a wake for remember Michael Dolan, a man they say had always wanted to give back to the community where he grew up.

Dolan spent seven years as a volunteer firefighter putting out fires and saving lives, but in 2017 he needed help saving his own.

Doctors initially told Dolan he had pneumonia, but then discovered a cancerous mass in his lungs. He was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.

The fire department acted quickly, and News 12 was there when the department held one of many fundraisers to help offset his medical bills.

Despite his heartbreaking diagnosis, his fellow firefighters say he was always positive, upbeat and never complained - and wanted nothing more than to come back and volunteer his time.

“He was always optimistic. He would always ask me, “You think they'd let me come back as a firefighter when I kick this thing?’ He's going to be missed enough,” says Baldwin Fire Deputy Chief Brien Cummings.

Firefighters parked his company's fire truck in front of the funeral home to honor him.

Michael Dolan's mother Bobbi, who is a nurse, was so inspired by her son that she also volunteers as a member of the first aid company of the Baldwin Fire Department.