By . Mark Duell, John Stevens and Rachel Quigley . Last updated at 10:58 PM on 11th July 2011 . Tragedy: Veteran fireman Shannon Stone died after he fell from the stand in front of his young son . The widow and son of a fireman who plummeted to his death at a Texas Rangers baseball match after trying to catch a ball walked hand-in-hand behind a fire engine carrying his coffin today. Shannon Stone, 39, died on Thursday after taking his six-year-old boy, Cooper, to a Rangers game, when he fell 20ft from the stands as he tried to catch a foul ball from Josh Hamilton for his son. Front-office executives from the Rangers and firemen from across the state have remembered Stone at a memorial service and then an eight-mile fire truck procession to a cemetery. ‘It's still difficult to accept, obviously, the nature of the death and the timing of the death and the way that it happened,' Brownwood Mayor Stephen Haynes said. The family asked that the church congregation was made up of family and friends. Everyone else was asked to line the cemetery route. The fireman was remembered fondly at the memorial service for his kindness, love of baseball and skill as both a firefighter and a loving dad, witnesses said. Stone took his son to the game in Arlington on Thursday night. They stopped to buy the boy a new glove on the way, and sat in left field, behind Cooper's favourite player, Josh Hamilton. Hamilton threw them a foul ball, but the thrill quickly turned tragic. Stone fell head-first about 20ft onto concrete, with Cooper watching. Witnesses said Stone was conscious after landing and spoke about Cooper being left alone. He was pronounced dead within an hour. An autopsy ruled the cause as blunt force trauma from the fall. Memorial walk: Family members follow the procession with the fire truck carrying the coffin of Stone after his funeral in Brownwood, Texas, on Monday . Looking back: Firefighters sit at the back of the fire truck carrying the coffin of Stone on Monday . Remembered: Brownwood Fire Department Lt. G. Nesom carries the helmet of Stone as he leads pallbearers out of First United Methodist Church following a service for Stone on Monday in Texas . Stone had been with the Brownwood . fire department since 1993. He was voted Firefighter of the Year twice . by his peers, according to the mayor, and had risen to the rank of . lieutenant. He also worked as a paramedic, and as . a rescue technician at Texas Motor Speedway. He also was involved in . disaster relief following Hurricanes Katrina and Ike, and fighting . wildfires. Scotty Burke, who was a Brownwood . police officer for 14 years and is now on the Lake Patrol, described . Stone as a ‘firefighter's firefighter’. Convoy: A funeral processional for Stone makes its way along FM 45 on the way to the cemetery on Monday . Carried: The coffin of Stone is loaded onto a Brownwood Fire Department truck following a memorial service . Mourners: John Hammond, Tammy Contreras, Jesse Jauregui, Jessica Rudloff, Jaden Rudloff and Jayli Rudloff, in the pram, stand along the route of the procession to honour Stone in Brownwood on Monday . He recalled that during the town's . annual, three-day reunion celebration, Stone cooked a barbecue for the . officers and firemen working at the event. ‘He always did it out of his . pocket,’ Mr Burke said. ‘Brownwood is a tight place,’ Mr Burke said. ‘When something like this happens, people come together and they take care of you.’ Brownwood is a town of about 20,000 . residents in the Hill Country of central Texas, some 150 miles west of . the Rangers' stadium in Arlington. Flags across the area have been at . half-mast since Friday. Floral tribute: Wreaths and flowers were placed outside the Central Fire Station in Brownwood in memory of Shannon Stone of the Brownwood Fire Department on Friday . Help: Fellow fan Ronnie Hargis, who had been chatting to the victim moments before the tragedy, leans out to try and grab him but it is too late . Several wreaths and a dozen yellow roses were . left in his memory at a monument outside the fire department. The little boy, Cooper, witnessed the . whole incident in horror and screamed desperately for his daddy - whose . last words as he lay dying on the pitch were for someone to check on . his son. The boy's mother choked back tears as she said the pair had gone to the match in the hope of a ball. She said: 'That's what they were . there for was to catch a ball. Cooper loves baseball and he's a big Josh . Hamilton fan. Had his jersey.' Respect: Texas Rangers' Josh Hamilton wears a black ribbon for Shannon Stone on Friday night's game after he died while catching the star player's foul ball . Tarpaulin: A railing stamped with a caution sign is seen on the upper balcony at the Texas Rangers ballpark in Arlington that looks down on the area where Stone fell at Thursday night's baseball game . The Rangers players are said to be . distraught over Stone's death on Thursday night, and they have all . been offered grief counselling. Hamilton - who overcame drug and . alcohol addictions to emerge as a devout Christian and an All-Star . outfielder - is said to be particularly heartbroken as he has young . children himself. He said: 'It was just hard for me, . hearing the little boy screaming for his daddy after he had fallen - and . then being home with my kids, really hit home. That's one of the main . things I remember.' He told the New York Times: 'It’s . like it happened in slow motion. Here was a little boy, screaming for . his daddy after he had fallen. I saw him just tip over the edge there. It was disbelief.’ The team . had a moment of silence for Stone, an 18-year veteran firefighter, . and wore black ribbons during Friday night's game, which continued a bad . week for the reigning MVP. Tribute: Members of the Brownwood Fire Department placed the bunker gear of Shannon Stone on a table during a benefit barbecue in his honour at the Brownwood Sherriff's and Police Department Office on Friday . A foul ball Hamilton hit during the . sixth inning against the Oakland A's smacked another fan in the face, . requiring him to get stitches. Stone's fatal fall - watched by a . crowd of 35,041 - has raised doubts over the safety of stadiums and the . time-honoured tradition of throwing balls to fans. In a statement, Major League Baseball . said its 'players are encouraged to be fan-friendly and we will . carefully review this incident with our clubs to continue to ensure a . safe environment for our fans'. Texas team president Nolan Ryan . revealed that they would be setting up a memorial fund for the Stone . family. He called it a 'very,very sad day for the Texas Rangers . organisation'. 'It hits us at our roots of what we . are,’ he said. ‘We're about making memories, about family entertainment . and last night we had a father and son at the game and had a very tragic . incident.' Former president George W. Bush, who . used to be the team's managing general partner and often attends games, . was sitting in the front row with Mr Ryan when the . accident happened.
Eight-mile fire truck procession from church to cemetery expected .
39-year-old fireman Shannon Stone toppled over barrier and plummeted 20ft .
He fell onto concrete after trying to catch ball for six-year-old son, Cooper .
Mr Stone cried out 'Please check on my son' in final words as he lay dying .
Questions raised about safety and tradition of throwing balls to fans .
By . Mark Duell, John Stevens and Rachel Quigley . Last updated at 10:58 PM on 11th July 2011 . Tragedy: Veteran fireman Shannon Stone died after he fell from the stand in front of his young son . The widow and son of a fireman who plummeted to his death at a Texas Rangers baseball match after trying to catch a ball walked hand-in-hand behind a fire engine carrying his coffin today. Shannon Stone, 39, died on Thursday after taking his six-year-old boy, Cooper, to a Rangers game, when he fell 20ft from the stands as he tried to catch a foul ball from Josh Hamilton for his son. Front-office executives from the Rangers and firemen from across the state have remembered Stone at a memorial service and then an eight-mile fire truck procession to a cemetery. ‘It's still difficult to accept, obviously, the nature of the death and the timing of the death and the way that it happened,' Brownwood Mayor Stephen Haynes said. The family asked that the church congregation was made up of family and friends. Everyone else was asked to line the cemetery route. The fireman was remembered fondly at the memorial service for his kindness, love of baseball and skill as both a firefighter and a loving dad, witnesses said. Stone took his son to the game in Arlington on Thursday night. They stopped to buy the boy a new glove on the way, and sat in left field, behind Cooper's favourite player, Josh Hamilton. Hamilton threw them a foul ball, but the thrill quickly turned tragic. Stone fell head-first about 20ft onto concrete, with Cooper watching. Witnesses said Stone was conscious after landing and spoke about Cooper being left alone. He was pronounced dead within an hour. An autopsy ruled the cause as blunt force trauma from the fall. Memorial walk: Family members follow the procession with the fire truck carrying the coffin of Stone after his funeral in Brownwood, Texas, on Monday . Looking back: Firefighters sit at the back of the fire truck carrying the coffin of Stone on Monday . Remembered: Brownwood Fire Department Lt. G. Nesom carries the helmet of Stone as he leads pallbearers out of First United Methodist Church following a service for Stone on Monday in Texas . Stone had been with the Brownwood . fire department since 1993. He was voted Firefighter of the Year twice . by his peers, according to the mayor, and had risen to the rank of . lieutenant. He also worked as a paramedic, and as . a rescue technician at Texas Motor Speedway. He also was involved in . disaster relief following Hurricanes Katrina and Ike, and fighting . wildfires. Scotty Burke, who was a Brownwood . police officer for 14 years and is now on the Lake Patrol, described . Stone as a ‘firefighter's firefighter’. Convoy: A funeral processional for Stone makes its way along FM 45 on the way to the cemetery on Monday . Carried: The coffin of Stone is loaded onto a Brownwood Fire Department truck following a memorial service . Mourners: John Hammond, Tammy Contreras, Jesse Jauregui, Jessica Rudloff, Jaden Rudloff and Jayli Rudloff, in the pram, stand along the route of the procession to honour Stone in Brownwood on Monday . He recalled that during the town's . annual, three-day reunion celebration, Stone cooked a barbecue for the . officers and firemen working at the event. ‘He always did it out of his . pocket,’ Mr Burke said. ‘Brownwood is a tight place,’ Mr Burke said. ‘When something like this happens, people come together and they take care of you.’ Brownwood is a town of about 20,000 . residents in the Hill Country of central Texas, some 150 miles west of . the Rangers' stadium in Arlington. Flags across the area have been at . half-mast since Friday. Floral tribute: Wreaths and flowers were placed outside the Central Fire Station in Brownwood in memory of Shannon Stone of the Brownwood Fire Department on Friday . Help: Fellow fan Ronnie Hargis, who had been chatting to the victim moments before the tragedy, leans out to try and grab him but it is too late . Several wreaths and a dozen yellow roses were . left in his memory at a monument outside the fire department. The little boy, Cooper, witnessed the . whole incident in horror and screamed desperately for his daddy - whose . last words as he lay dying on the pitch were for someone to check on . his son. The boy's mother choked back tears as she said the pair had gone to the match in the hope of a ball. She said: 'That's what they were . there for was to catch a ball. Cooper loves baseball and he's a big Josh . Hamilton fan. Had his jersey.' Respect: Texas Rangers' Josh Hamilton wears a black ribbon for Shannon Stone on Friday night's game after he died while catching the star player's foul ball . Tarpaulin: A railing stamped with a caution sign is seen on the upper balcony at the Texas Rangers ballpark in Arlington that looks down on the area where Stone fell at Thursday night's baseball game . The Rangers players are said to be . distraught over Stone's death on Thursday night, and they have all . been offered grief counselling. Hamilton - who overcame drug and . alcohol addictions to emerge as a devout Christian and an All-Star . outfielder - is said to be particularly heartbroken as he has young . children himself. He said: 'It was just hard for me, . hearing the little boy screaming for his daddy after he had fallen - and . then being home with my kids, really hit home. That's one of the main . things I remember.' He told the New York Times: 'It’s . like it happened in slow motion. Here was a little boy, screaming for . his daddy after he had fallen. I saw him just tip over the edge there. It was disbelief.’ The team . had a moment of silence for Stone, an 18-year veteran firefighter, . and wore black ribbons during Friday night's game, which continued a bad . week for the reigning MVP. Tribute: Members of the Brownwood Fire Department placed the bunker gear of Shannon Stone on a table during a benefit barbecue in his honour at the Brownwood Sherriff's and Police Department Office on Friday . A foul ball Hamilton hit during the . sixth inning against the Oakland A's smacked another fan in the face, . requiring him to get stitches. Stone's fatal fall - watched by a . crowd of 35,041 - has raised doubts over the safety of stadiums and the . time-honoured tradition of throwing balls to fans. In a statement, Major League Baseball . said its 'players are encouraged to be fan-friendly and we will . carefully review this incident with our clubs to continue to ensure a . safe environment for our fans'. Texas team president Nolan Ryan . revealed that they would be setting up a memorial fund for the Stone . family. He called it a 'very,very sad day for the Texas Rangers . organisation'. 'It hits us at our roots of what we . are,’ he said. ‘We're about making memories, about family entertainment . and last night we had a father and son at the game and had a very tragic . incident.' Former president George W. Bush, who . used to be the team's managing general partner and often attends games, . was sitting in the front row with Mr Ryan when the . accident happened.
Tragedy: Veteran fireman Shannon Stone died after trying to catch a ball walked hand-in-hand behind eight-mile fire truck procession to a cemetery. fell head-first about 20ft onto concrete, with last words as he lay dying on the pitch were for 35,041 - has raised doubts over the safety of stadiums and the . time-honoured tradition of throwing balls to fans. In a statement, Major