OLDS – Capt. Lynn Roberts has retired after serving on the Olds Fire Department (OFD) for 27 years.
However, he plans to continue working in his regular job, undertaking health and safety audits for various companies.
Members of the department and the public showed their appreciation for all his years of contribution on Saturday, May 23 while still practising social distancing.
From 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., Roberts stood in the fire hall as people drove by and rolled down their windows to congratulate him and wish him well.
Afterward, a ceremony was held in the back parking lot of the fire hall.
All the members of the fire department lined up, socially-distanced from each other as mayor Michael Muzychka said a few words.
A ringing of the bells ceremony was also held to signify the end of his shift.
“Lynn’s involvement over the years has been very in-depth,” chief Justin Andrew said during an interview.
“He had different roles as a firefighter, a lieutenant, the fire prevention officer for many years and then finally as captain.
“During his time here he was integral in all of the operations of the department, from emergency response to the critical incident peer support team,” Andrew said.
He also noted that in addition to his time with the OFD, Roberts also served in Taber.
In addition, for many years, Roberts also worked for the local privately-run ambulance service. Then, when it became the regional EMS service, he worked on a casual basis.
Lately, Roberts has been working for Aaron Paramedical, doing stand-by events for events such as the Calgary Stampede and other rodeos.
“For us to lose Lynn certainly leaves us with a void, as anybody who’s been with an organization for 27 years would do,” Andrew said.
“But the thing that Lynn has always brought to the department is his ability to be that mentor-type person. (He) always was a figure that younger members could look up to and interact with in a very friendly and positive way.
“So we certainly will notice that gap and somebody else will jockey to fill in that position for us.”
Roberts is an enthusiastic curler. As such, he has been a key member of OFD curling teams that attended bonspiels out of town. He also helped organize a bonspiel hosted by the OFD several years ago.
Andrew said Roberts was a dedicated firefighter who could be counted on to respond to any incident he could, day or night.
He said he’ll miss Roberts’ dedication, his experience and his great sense of humour.
“He’s always worked very hard and he also enjoys playing with the group as a teammate as well, so the camaraderie piece will be missed as well,” Andrew said.
Andrew recalled one fond memory involving Roberts.
Several years ago, he and Roberts were attending a training course where firefighters were learning how to investigate workplace accidents.
Andrew and Roberts were asked to serve as actors, staging an accident in the fire hall.
“Lynn was asked to pretend that he stuck his finger into one of our powered fans that we used to fan smoke and to pretend to cut his finger off,” Andrew recalled.
“We used ketchup and plasticine to make a fake finger.
“Lynn played the part so well that the people who were supposed to investigate the accident thought that it was real, because his acting was so good.”
That incident was the source of a lot of laughs over the years.
Roberts was very appreciative of the retirement ceremonies.
“It was pretty nice; it was a nice deal,” he said.
Roberts said he’s really going to miss the camaraderie of the fire department.
“I will miss them probably daily for a while,” he said. “They’re probably the best bunch of guys I’ve ever worked with – guys and gals.”
