As my time working at NCSFA full time ends, it’s difficult to look back and not think of all the giants of the NC Fire service I’ve worked with over the years. Our staff at NCSFA, all heroes with a servant attitude, the Board members over the last decade who contribute so much time and effort, and the countless fire service leaders who strive to make our State the best. I can only say they are all giants in a service that we love.
I’ve been blessed with so many things in life. A wonderful wife of 44 ½ years, Vickie, who has stood beside me as a partner in all that I’ve done. You must acknowledge and thank God for the strength you gain from having someone like her at your side. To my kids, who gave up a lot because of the time requirements of my job but also traveled with me on so many occasions. They have all become successful in their own right, and wonderful parents. I’m so proud of them.
My work family, Ed, Kris, Dean, Tabitha, Dan, Julie, and Midori, and my successor Barry Overman, who I hope fervently and believe will not only continue the work but make it better. They are a special group I’ve come to know and love, as well as their families. They truly have a heart for the fire service.
Our Board members, past and present, who hired me, gave me direction, trusted me, and supported me. They’ve become close friends, along with their spouses and families. You spend at least 7 years with each of them, get to know them, and their families, and seem less like Board members and more like friends. People really don’t have any idea how much time and effort they take to make the fire service better.
And to all the fire service leaders across the State and Country, who have mentored me, worked with me, been friends with me, and shared many adventures, my thanks and heartfelt gratitude.
It has been a real adventure.
My years of service have been an honor and a privilege, and I leave with the knowledge that the work we do matters, that each of us can make a difference, and that the journey of service is one of the most rewarding paths one can take. Over the years we’ve seen so many accomplishments in the NC fire service, and that’s a tribute to so many giants.
As I retire, I do so with a heart full of gratitude. Gratitude for the opportunities I’ve had to serve, for the colleagues who have journeyed alongside me, and for the fire service that has entrusted me with some of their hopes and concerns. To those who will continue in public service, I leave you with this charge: serve with integrity, lead with compassion, and never lose sight of the people you are sworn to serve.
It’s difficult for me to leave a job like this without a sense of guilt, that metaphorically I’m not continuing to help carry the bucket, to help stretch the hose line, to be there and use whatever expertise I have to help out. When you’ve done something for so many years, it’ll take some getting used to watching instead of doing. I’ll help when needed, whenever asked, but I’ll miss the day-to-day interaction.
I read something George Washington said in his farewell address in 1796 that gave me some comfort in that respect, that seemed to fit my hopes that I could set aside this feeling of guilt from leaving, so I paraphrased it a little…
“I’m satisfied that if any circumstances, expertise, or knowledge I have, that have given any peculiar value to my services and work, they were by God’s design, temporary. I have consolation in the belief that, while age, choice, and prudence invite me to now leave my position, my love of the fire service has not waivered and does not forbid it.”
Thank you for the opportunity to serve, for the memories, and for the journey that lies ahead.
