Thursday, November 18, 2021
VOLUME 4 I ISSUE 21
MERIDIANSOURCE.CA
SEE PAGES 10-13 FOR OUR SALUTE TO SENIORS SPECIAL SECTION
Legacy firefighters honoured by GG GEOFF LEE
WRITER
.................................. Legacy Regional Protective Services, at the Marshall fire hall, held what could be called a three-alarm employee recognition night that was long overdue. Firefighters Aaron Lines, Richard Gross and Capt. Rob Patterson received national Exemplary Service Medals and plaques for 20 years of service on Monday night with friends, family members and town officials on hand. “Obviously you’ve done a few things right if after 20 years you’re still getting along and still showing up here all dressed,” said interim regional chief, Dean Peters, who presented the awards. Canada’s Exemplary Service Medals recognize the men and women dedicated to preserving Canada’s public safety through long and outstanding service. “It’s a good group of people. We have people that want to volunteer their time and effort to
do this job,” said Peters. “That’s admirable, and to do it for 20 years is a good thing and it sets a good example for all the younger folk and even us older folk.” Peters presented the awards on behalf of Canada’s former governorgeneral, Julie Payette, which were originally intended to be handed out in 2020, but COVID kept delaying plans for a big celebration. He said with no end in sight regarding the pandemic, they decided to deal with it now quietly. “It’s a handsome medal,” said Peters. All three of the 20-year Legacy firefighters also received watches from Legacy protective services, while Patterson has since retired and received a second plaque for his employment. The special event also provided Peters with an opportunity to hand out epaulette shoulder patches to volunteer firefighters on hand and say a few words to the troops. “So now we all look like firefighters and
you can tell that you’re a firefighter because it says so on your shoulder,” said Peters. He also noted the time was right “to thank all the folks that started the departments before us” and recognize those who put in 20 years. “That’s a remarkable thing,” said Peters. Dave Harding, a councillor for the Town of Marshall and a former long-serving firefighter, generated a few laughs recalling a funny hose story about Gross during his early training days. Harding also noted when he signed on as a volunteer firefighter in the late 1970s, the hall had a 1951 International fire truck. Peters added the Marshall fire department dates back to 1914. “We always put out as much fire as we can with whatever equipment we’ve been allotted. The thing that has always been the same is the fact it’s firefighting we’re doing,” said Peters. “Since I’ve stepped
Geoff Lee Meridian Source
Legacy Regional Protective Services firefighters (L-R) Aaron Lines, Richard Gross and Cpt. Rob Patterson received national Exemplary Service Medals and plaques Monday night at the Marshall fire hall for their 20 years of service. Patterson is now retired.
into the regional chief position, I’ve been very thankful to all the councils for all their work looking forward and getting us all the equipment.” The Legacy fire hall in Marshall has a latemodel tanker engine that carries about 3,000 gallons of water with a 500-gallon-per-minute pump. They also have a quick response truck that Peters calls a grass fire truck. “It’s got several pumps on the back and carries 150 gallons of water. It’s got several pumps, so it’s really effective in the grassfire
business,” he said. “The beauty of the region is we have more equipment waiting for us in Lloyd and Lashburn. We’ve got a lot of support coming from just up the road.” Peters noted there are 49 firefighters at the three halls with the Marshall hall covering the entire RM. The Legacy regional firefighters also conduct highway rescues and vehicle extrication with not many quiet nights lately. “Calls have been up a little bit year over year. Some slippery roads caused a few accidents on Wednesday night
(Nov. 10) so we’re up to 85 calls this year,” said Peters with snow falling outside. He says they have also had a rash of false smoke detector calls this fall as people change their batteries and don’t update their contact information with their alarm monitoring company. “We started a public education program in the RM to make sure you have the right contact information,” said Peters. “There’s a lot of activity going on as soon as your alarm goes off i f y o u d o n’t r e sp o nd immediately.”