Fallen heroes honored at MVP Arena Firebird’s game

CAPITAL REGION, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The families of fallen American heroes, Casey Frankoski and John Grassia along with the family for Jacob Pratt, who is still in the hospital and recovering from his injuries, all coming together at MVP Arena for a sporting event.  But it's what happened on the sidelines, not the scoreboard, that is leaving a lasting impact.

It was a special day at the Firebirds Arena Football game. All three Capital Region families were in attendance, being honored at the game, Sunday afternoon. 

The families were escorted onto the field for the coin toss, holding hands and standing strong. After the coin toss, the families being invited back onto the field one more time. It was an emotional tribute that brought some fans to tears.

“I just want to thank everyone for all the support that they have given us over the last 2 months. From the Frankoski family, the Pratt family and the Grassia family, thank you,” said John Grassia’s mother, Judith.

Joe Frankoski, father of fallen pilot Casey Frankoski, chiming in with a special message of his own.  “We'd also like to remember Chris Luna the Border agent we're going to send one of these balls down to his family,” said James Frankoski.

Co-owner of the Firebirds, Mike Kwarta, says this moment is bigger than arena football. “We've said that from day one when we brought football back it's all about community. It's an unfortunate thing that happened and again anything we can do, any little piece we can give back to make a better day for them, we try to do it we can,” said Kwarta.

Jacob Pratt's family sharing with NEWS10 he is on the road to recovery, doing remarkably well under the circumstances.  

While the Grassia and Frankoski families say the last few weeks have been very hard on them, they say it's important to them to keep their children’s memories alive.