When it comes to paid/career firefighters, my department is relatively new. While some of the volunteer fire departments that were organized over time date back to the beginning of the 20th century, it wasn’t until 1949 and 1950 that the first paid-men, as they were called, were hired. Of the 14 then-existing VFD’s, thirteen of them now had a government employee working in the station answering calls and maintaining the equipment and facility.
But since the county didn’t have an authorized job description for “fireman,” these new-hires were classified as “custodians” using the job description from the school board. The same for the uniforms, gray work clothes from the schools. They were the true pathfinders for a department that now has an authorized strength of about 1,300 uniformed and 200 civilians. And how things have changed in that time!
What brought all this to mind today was the announcement yesterday that one of these “original 13″ members passed away. Bob Hunter was badge #2 and he came to work at a young enough age to be able to complete a long career, retiring in 1981 as a battalion chief. When I came to work (badge #237) most of the originals were still on the job and I had the pleasure to know them and observe their individual quirks and their common traits. One thing they all had in common was a dedication to the well-being of the department and the ability to make anything work.
It’s notable that about four or five of them are still alive today. But as I keep traveling along life’s trail myself, I can’t help but notice that my shopping habits are changing along with everything else. When I go to the Hallmark store, instead of buying a condolence card once or twice a year I pick them up in batches of four now.
But we still have to make the most of every day that we can, so let’s get started on today by getting this equipment checked out. I really need to get some coffee going.
