NY Daily News

But perhaps no battle is more important - and certainly none is more personal - than Kearney's fight to save his 4-year-old son, who has a form of muscular dystrophy.

It is that struggle that has inspired Kearney to help organize dozens of firefighters who will begin collecting donations today to fund research to find a cure for the deadly disease.

"Without a doubt, I have my son in mind," said Kearney, who is assigned to Division 3.

"When we first heard the diagnosis, we were destroyed," he said, "but now we're trying to turn this into something positive and do as much as we can to help."

For four consecutive Thursdays, firefighters will be stationing information tables and holding FDNY boots to be filled with donations. Today and Aug. 2, the firefighters will be in Times Square, and next Thursday and Aug. 9, they will be in front of Penn Station.

Last year, the FDNY raised more than $16,000 during its first annual Fill the Boot campaign, and volunteers hope to exceed that total this year.

"This will have a huge impact," said Michelle Galioto, district director for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. "Since 1952, firefighters across the country have raised more than $250 million by literally filling the boot."

In addition to helping medical research, the money will be used to supply wheelchairs and braces for the more than 1 million people who suffer from the disease, which dramatically weakens a person's muscles.

Kearney's son Kevin is already having trouble keeping up with children his age, and his condition will only get worse without a cure, his worried father said.

"By the age of 7, he's going to need a walker, and by 11, he'll be in a wheelchair," said Kearney. "By his early 20s, he'll probably be dead."

"We're racing against the clock here," said Kearney, who is studying for a nurse's degree so he can help with his son's care. "But even if we're too late for Kevin, we want to help as many people as we can."