Greenfield fire victims honored with dedication of bench and flag pole

By Editor | August 13, 2025 |

This beautiful stone sits at the base of the flag pole and honors Nancy Settles Hillis, who perished in a house fire on March 31, 2022 while trying to save 11-month-old Danika Alderfor, who she was babysitting. Hillis went back into the burning house to save the baby and didn’t make it out a second time. The bench in the background was also purchased in her honor. Fire Board President Mike Weller read the dedication for Hillis and Alderfor for a crowd of about 40 people outside the fire house on Saturday afternoon. (Carmen Ensinger/Greene Prairie Press)

By Carmen Ensinger

On Saturday, before the start of the Greenfield Fire Protection District’s Open House at their fire station, two Greenfield residents who perished in a tragic house fire on March 31, 2022 were honored.
Greenfield Fire Board President Mike Weller dedicated a new flag pole and a bench to Nancy Settles Hillis and one-year-old Danika Alderfor who were killed in the fire.
“Not all of us agree what a hero is, but the definition of a hero is someone who gives of themselves, often putting their own life at great risk for the greater good of others,” Weller said. “We know that Nancy tried to do this because we all know she went back into the house – she wasn’t going to leave anyone behind. Not thinking of herself, she gave it all. That is a hero.”
Hillis was a 1962 graduate of Greenfield High School and lived most of her life in Greenfield.
“According to several of her classmates, she was always very nice, and friendly,” Weller said. “She was always active, sweet, kind and always had a smile on her face when you met her. She is remembered and admired by many.”
March 31, 2022 was a tragic day in Greenfield, not just for the families of those who perished, but also for the firemen who fought the blaze and the community who knew and loved both Hillis and Alderfor.
“It was a very tragic day here in Greenfield, but we all know that for Nancy and Danika’s family it could have been no worse,” Weller said. “It was one of the toughest days for our firemen and there aren’t any days that our thoughts and prayers aren’t with Nancy and Danika who have taken their place in Heaven.”
Weller said the outpouring of love and respect by the Greenfield community, as well as the surrounding communities was overwhelming.
“Over $30,000 was raised in their honor that went to our fire district,” Weller said. “We became the recipient of this money to spend in a variety of ways, but specifically to educate young kids on how to escape a burning building. That is quite outstanding for a community this size.”
One of the purchases made with the money was a smokehouse, which simulates a burning structure. Children are taught how to stay low to the ground to avoid the smoke.
Another purchase was two thermal imaging guns that are used to identify persons in burning buildings. One gun stays in Greenfield and the other is at the Rockbridge Fire House.
It also allowed them to purchase a generator system for the fire house.
“This generator is going to allow us to use the firehouse as a heating or cooling center,” Weller said. “Should a disaster or catastrophe occur and the town is without power, we can still provide a warm or cool place for people to go.”
At the end of the day, the Danika Alderfer Fund raised a total of $26,500 for the fire department. The majority of this money, $22,275, was raised through the sale of pink light bulbs in honor of Danika. The bulbs sold for $20 each and the fundraiser began on what would have been Danika’s first birthday on April 16.
Hundreds of pink lights shone brightly each night for months in every community in Greene County as well as in Jerseyville. Their goal was to sell 1,000 lightbulbs, which they far exceeded.
The Nancy Hillis Memorial Fund brought in an additional $3,050.
A huge banner inside the fire house shows where the donations came from and what the funds were spent on.