The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) is pleased to announce the 2018 winners of its three national fire service awards. Ronald Farr will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award, sponsored by Rosenbauer America; Jared Hagen will receive the Junior Firefighter of the Year Award, sponsored by California Casualty; and the Gaston Volunteer Fire Department Junior Firefighter Program will receive the Junior Firefighter Program of the Year Award, sponsored by California Casualty.

“The accomplishments of all the nominees were very impressive,” said NVFC Chair Kevin D. Quinn. “These achievement awards recognize the remarkable and inspirational work that fire service volunteers contribute to the community, and this year’s pool of nominees showcased that spirit perfectly. The recipients of these awards are truly the embodiment of outstanding commitment and service.” 

A special banquet to honor the recipients of the Lifetime Achievement and Junior Firefighter of the Year awards will take place during the NVFC’s spring meeting on April 20, 2018, in Alexandria, VA. In addition, the Junior Firefighter of the Year will receive a $500 training/education stipend. The recipient of the Junior Firefighter Program of the Year will be presented with their award in their hometown so that all of their junior firefighters will be able to attend. 

Learn more about the NVFC’s awards program at www.nvfc.org/awards. Stay tuned to the NVFC web site, Twitter, Facebook, and Dispatch e-newsletter in late April for additional information about each award winner as well as photos from the award presentations.

The recipients of the NVFC’s 2018 awards are as follows:

Ronald Farr
NVFC Lifetime Achievement Award
Award sponsored by Rosenbauer America

Ronald Farr has been an active member of the Michigan fire service for over 50 years. He joined the Plainwell Fire Department in 1967 and continued to serve as a volunteer firefighter for over 36 years. In 1978 he was hired by the Kalamazoo Township Fire Department, where he moved up the ranks to fire chief in 2003. He served as the State Fire Marshal from 2009-2011 before becoming a regulatory fire engineer for UL. Six years ago, Farr founded the nonprofit organization Michigan S.A.F.E. (Smoke Alarms for Everyone), a sustainable, statewide smoke alarm installation program that is aimed at protecting the high-risk populations of children and older adults. Since the program began, over 70,000 smoke alarms have been installed throughout Michigan.

In 2010, Farr was appointed as chair of the newly developed Fire Prevention Organization and Deployment Technical Committee, which oversees NFPA 1730, Standard on Organization and Deployment of Fire Prevention Inspection and Code Enforcement, Plan Review, Investigation, and Public Education Operations and the proposed NFPA 1300, Standard on Community Risk Assessment and Community Risk Reduction Plan Development. ln April 2014, he presented an overview of NFPA 1730 at the Vision 20/20 Models in Fire Prevention Symposium to help participants strategically incorporate the community risk reduction process into their department's prevention and suppression operations.

Farr is a life member of the Michigan State Firemen’s Association and currently serves as 3rd Director. His many awards and honors include: Fire Chief of the Year from the Michigan Association of Fire Chiefs (2010), Excellence in Fire Prevention Activities from the New England Association of Fire Marshals (2008), President’s Award from the National Fire Protection Association (2000), and Fire Inspector of the Year from the Michigan Fire Inspectors Society (1985).

Jared Hagen
Junior Firefighter of the Year Award
Sponsored by California Casualty

Jared Hagen has been a junior firefighter with the Northwest Fire Explorer Post 1854 at Canal Fulton (OH) Fire Department (CFFD) for over

Josh Cellars and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) partnered to provide 10 volunteer fire departments with $5,000 grants to help provide critical training to their members. The final two recipients are the Utica (MS) Volunteer Fire Department and the Water Witch Hose Company #2 (CT). 

Utica Volunteer Fire Department

The Utica Volunteer Fire Department is located in Hinds County, MS. Its 23 volunteers protect 12,500 residents over 75 square miles. In the county and surrounding rural population, over 35 percent of residents live at or below the poverty level, over 13 percent have been diagnosed with diabetes, there is a large elderly population, and heart disease and related conditions are prevalent. Additionally, the department is often first on scene for car accidents. These factors result in most of the department’s calls being medical. While a majority of the volunteers are trained as emergency medical responders (EMR), none are certified emergency medical technicians (EMT). 

The Josh Cellars training grant will help nine of its members plus up to six members from neighboring departments to obtain EMT certification. Having 15 EMTs fully trained and certified in the jurisdiction will greatly improve response times, and the volunteers will be able to provide an enhanced level of patient care for victims needing assistance, particularly in trauma situations. Having EMTs readily available will also help the department provide better care for their personnel on the fireground. The department operates in very humid conditions most of the year, resulting in extreme physical outputs for operational firefighters.

“The Josh Cellars grant will help us to pay for EMT training and provide us the opportunity to meet the overwhelming needs of our community with a greater scope of knowledge and skills of the emergency medical services," said Chief Sammy White. 

"There is so much need in our jurisdiction as we respond to more medical calls than any other type,” said Lieutenant Lauren Wilkes Stubblefield. “The EMR training that some of us have received is great, but as EMTs more of us will be able to better understand the medical aspects of any emergency situation, ultimately saving lives for some of the most vulnerable residents in our state." 

Water Witch Hose Company #2 

Serving the largest geographical town in Connecticut, the Water Witch Hose Company #2 of New Milford has been a staple in the community since 1863. The company has 47 volunteers who serve 22,500 residents over 40 square miles. All members are required to certify at Firefighter I, and most advance their training to Firefighter II. The department emphasizes training to ensure all members are ready to respond and can provide the highest level of protection to residents while also staying safe on the job. 

The Josh Cellars grant will help the department provide both veterans and new recruits with training on two topics – modern day forcible entry and firefighter survival and rescue. With the advancement of technology over the years, forcible entry is much more complex, and additional education and hands-on application is necessary in order to quickly and effectively enter a structure with the least amount of property damage. The firefighter survival and rescue course will help members learn advanced techniques to protect their crews and mutual aid partners so everyone can go home safely. All training will encompass both classroom and intensive practical skills sessions.

"We thank Josh Cellars for its commitment to volunteer fire departments, and we appreciate the NVFC for its continued support of the volunteer fire service,” said Assistant Chief Richard Squires. “It is only with the help of these community-minded companies that we can advance our training and provide our community with the highest quality of trained volunteer profe

No Spokane city employee could earn more than $182,000 annually under a package of changes to City Hall’s budgeting process being proposed by Council President Ben Stuckart. “We’re not the private sector, we’re the public sector,” said Stuckart, who doesn’t expect a vote on the measure until next month at the earliest.
- PUB DATE: 3/20/2018 6:34:36 AM - SOURCE: Spokane Spokesman-Review