Honouring the members of the Whitecourt Fire Department

On Saturday, October 19, the Whitecourt Fire Department held its annual Awards Night to celebrate the current roster of firefighters, honour retirees, and present awards to those who stood out from the rest. Dressed in their best, the department entered the hall with the Royal Canadian Air Cadets leading the way with drums and bagpipe. Once each member was lined up at the front of the hall, Fire Chief Brian Wynn introduced each one. Members ranged from newcomers who had just joined this year to those who have been local firefighters since the eighties.

Deputy Fire Chief Wayne Andrusiak addressed the crowd. “The men and women of today’s fire service are confronted with a more dangerous work environment than ever before. We are forced to continually change our strategies and tactics to accomplish our tasks. Our methods may change but our goals remain the same: to save lives and to protect property, sometimes at a terrible cost. This is what we do. This is our chosen profession, and this is the tradition of the firefighter.”

Special guests in attendance included MLA Martin Long, Mayor Maryann Chichak, and Mayor Ron Govenlock. Each took turns speaking to the crowd and thanking the department members for their service. “As firefighters, you put your lives on the line. You see unimaginable situations and you run into places and circumstances that most people run away from,” said Long.

Mayor Chichak shared amazing stats with those in attendance to show just how dedicated the Whitecourt department is. “So far this year, the Whitecourt Fire Department has responded to 240 incidents and spent over 2,000 hours on calls. The time dedicated by our members is overwhelming. One of the top priorities for our crew on this department is training and it goes without saying that training is the backbone of any fire department. Training benefits everyone: the fire department, the firefighters, our community, and the region as a whole through mutual aid. So far this year, over 10,400 hours have been spent on training. I personally think that for a community our size this is truly amazing.”

Throughout the evening there were hilarious jabs between the firefighters and police officers in attendance especially with Constable Jessica Brown as the evening’s MC. She had everyone in stitches and kept the mood light and fun. From donut jokes to who residents like more, police or firefighters, Constable Brown brought out the laughs regularly. She even offered a box of a dozen donuts to whomever had the shortest speech between Captain Brian Wynn and his two deputies, Aaron Floyd and Wayne Andrusiak. Deputy Fire Chief Wayne Andrusiak took the win for his table though he only ended up with 11 donuts due to a Captain’s tax.

It makes sense for such an evening to be filled with laughter and comradery given just how hard the job can be for a first responder. Seeing things that the regular public couldn’t imagine and being able to make life and death decisions more often than they even get credited for takes a significant toll. They, along with their families, give so much to their community for very little in return. Being able to laugh and reminisce would be cathartic beyond measure and 100 per cent deserved.

This year’s big winners include Ellis Miller who won the Larry Lopes Memorial Fire Prevention Award, Sheri Pritchard who won the Pete Heck Award, Taya Green who won Officer of the Year, and Firefighter of the Year was won by Chris Green. Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to all the current and recently retired Whitecourt firefighters for your sacrifice, bravery, and protection.