We apologize to anyone who might have come by to see the unveiling of the Blaze statue on Oct. 3; the memorial for former Fire Commissioner Gerry Orr were scheduled at the same time, and several of our key members wanted to be at that service.

Thank you to whomever left a bowl and a lovely toy by the statue. We aren’t planning to reschedule the unveiling, but we invite everyone to come by and enjoy this lovely piece of public art.

Saying farewell to old friends

The community has lost two well-known members with ties to the fire department in the last month.

Orr, in addition to having served as the town’s banker for many years, was a fire commissioner for one of the districts – Kitsap County Fire District No. 10 (Kingston) – that became North Kitsap Fire and Rescue.

Orr recognized that the all-volunteer department could no longer meet the needs of the growing community, and worked with fellow board members to hire Paul Nichol as fire chief and first paid full-time member.

A veteran of Kingston Ambulance, Hap Decoteau was also a fervent supporter of the fire department. For many years, Hap cooked the dozens of eggs firefighters used for the annual hunt in Kola Kole Park, served up the food for the department’s annual awards banquet and came through in many ways whenever we asked for her help.

We’ll miss them both.

New places for not-so-new faces

Over the past year, we completed the latest phase in our long-range staffing plan, designed to ensure that we’ve got enough fully-qualified personnel to respond to incidents from each of our four staffed stations without relying on expensive overtime.

Two new firefighters were hired, and three veterans were promoted to the rank of lieutenant. We’d like to introduce them to you.

The firefighters are:

Alex Hickey, 21, grew up in Kingston and joined NKF&R’s volunteer-resident program upon graduation from North Kitsap High School in 2006. Having spent a lot of time around fire departments with several family members in the business, Hickey said that he has never aspired to any other career.

Hired in July, he said that he feels incredibly lucky to be doing something worthwhile for the community that raised him.

Reilly Williams also spent his childhood in Kingston and, following his 2005 graduation from North, decided to explore the fire service through NKF&R’s volunteer-resident program.

He quickly found that he loved the work, and directed all of his efforts toward making it a career.

The 23-year-old achieved that goal when he was hired in July. When asked what he likes best about the job, he noted that every day is different. And he likes the fact that he gets to help people – many of whom are neighbors.

“It’s a dream come true,” Williams said.

The lieutenants are:

Steve Murray, 28, who was promoted in July after serving more than five years as a career firefighter at NKF&R. Murray also started in the district’s volunteer-resident program shortly after graduating from North in 1999. As an officer, he says that he’s looking forward to guiding new members in the same position he once occupied, and helping them to also achieve their goals.

A ten-year veteran, Joe Petersen preceded his hiring at NKF&R as a member of the district’s volunteer-resident program. He said his most important function as an officer is to ensure that his personnel are well-informed.

The 36-year-old is the son of a retired Seattle firefighter, and he is also enthusiastic about his role as a trainer.

“To be a part of the transformation as a new (volunteer-resident) member reliable firefighter – it’s very special,” Petersen said.

Tyler Williams, 33, joined NKF&R’s volunteer-resident program in 1997 alongside his Woodway High School basketball teammate, Joe Petersen. They were hired on the same day, and both promoted to lieutenant in July.

Williams said that he wants to be the kind of officer who leads by example, and looks forward to mentoring younger members. He points to the special opportunities posed by the district’s staffing configuration noting that, because of this, “lieutenants are ‘working officers’ who spend their days in the trenches with their crew.”

“I like that,” he said.

If you run into these young men, we hope you’ll take the time to congratulate them on the success brought about by their hard work and dedication.

Adult, child and infant CPR class

Join us to learn this important skill from from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14 at the Paul T. Nichol Headquarters fire station (26642 Miller Bay Road NE near Kingston). Tuition is $20 per student; to reserve a spot, tuition must be paid in advance. For more information, contact us at (360) 297-3619.

Child Safety Seat Check

Our dedicated volunteer car seat technicians are available to help ensure the safest ride possible on the second Saturday of every month at our headquarters fire station.

Stop by between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Nov. 14 for a free child car seat check.