LAC LA BICHE - Last month, the Lac La Biche County Protective Services Department dedicated an evening to recognizing firefighters in the community.
The Sept. 17 celebration included acknowledging the milestones and achievements of over a dozen members throughout the County who have heroically been putting their lives on the line for years. Spending one evening to acknowledge the time and effort of many of the members, who are predominately volunteers or work on-call, is a small but mighty gesture, said John Kokotilo, the County’s manager of protective services and regional fire chief.
“We give something back to them because they give so much to the community. They risk their lives, they risk their family time, and they’re there at the beck and call when required. So, it’s nice to put on an event like this.”
The evening included a catered dinner, door prizes and speeches from senior members, and also saw service awards and plaque's given to firefighters who have reached five to 30-year milestones, said Kokotilo.
“We’ve got a 30-year man on, we’ve got a couple of 20-year people… That’s a long time to be on the fire service.”
Station 1 Chief David Moseley is this year’s recipient for 30-year Canadian Volunteer Fire Services Association (CVFSA) award.
There was also a large group of firefighters who were also acknowledged with five, 10, 12 and 15-year awards. Many of the members have played a large role in keeping the County’s five fire stations staffed, and the community safe.
“We’re extremely happy and proud that our retention is staying and that we have members to respond who do very positive work all the way around,” said Kokotilo.
Dedicated team
Many of the firefighters serving the large municipality have full-time jobs on top of being firefighters, he explained. Kokotilo, who has over 30 years experience as a firefighter, alongside guiding and working with his fellow service members, says his team’s dedication is astounding.
Recently, a fire in the Hylo area saw staff work into the early morning on Sept. 15 before heading off to their daily jobs.
“They were on Highway 63, got the call at 2:40 a.m. and didn’t get back until 11 a.m. and some of them still had to go to work. That’s one thing that makes our team so resilient.”
The annual award ceremony, which was put on hold in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is a great opportunity to showcase the department, he explained. This year's event saw dozens of guests and awards handed out. Next year, the fire chief hopes it can be an even bigger celebration.
“I’ve been doing this for a long time and I love it and I still love it… It was a wonderful turnout and I think it's going to get bigger and better every year.”
Recipients include:
2022 Peer Recognition Award - Capt. Jarrett Austin
Five-year pin – Bruce Brown, Steven Cadieux, Capt. John Mondal, Ed Plamondon, Polly Savelieff, and Andrew Snook
10-year pin – Capt. Dustin Downes
12-year Provincial Medal – Capt. Draper Dempsey, Capt. Jarrett Austin , Deputy Fire Chief Chris Newhook and Chief Peter Lewis
15-year pin – Chief 2 Peter Lewis and Station 4 Chief Phillip Arnett
20-year Federal Medal and pin – Station 5 Chief Curtis McGillivray and Capt. Steven Forsberg
30-year CVFSA award and pin – Station 1 Chief David Moseley
