A committed core of dedicated Sundre Fire Department volunteers were recently recognized and celebrated for their decades of service to the community.
During the May 27 Alberta Fire Chiefs Association’s 71st annual conference, trade show and annual general meeting in Edmonton’s EXPO Centre, five members were named as recipients of the Fire Services Exemplary Award by Lois Mitchell, Alberta's lieutenant-governor.
They were as follows: Chief Marty Butts, deputy Chief Kevin Gamble, captains Dave Bennett and Rob Kibblewhite, as well as training officer Rob McBride.
“It’s pretty special to achieve that with the members, I don’t know where the time went,” said the chief.
Butts was recognized for 30 years of service with his daughter Brooklyn by his side, while Gamble, Bennett and Kibblewhite earned 20-year service awards. McBride was unable to attend the ceremony in person as he was in New Brunswick at the time to help celebrate his father Earle McBride, also a firefighter, for 40 years of service.
“Rob did not go unrecognized though. We managed to take him by surprise in New Brunswick and recognize him for his 20 years of service alongside his father,” wrote chief’s assistant Patty LaPointe in a post on the Sundre Fire Rescue Society’s social media page.
“It is my pleasure to be able to work with all these guys and to see what they have contributed and continue to contribute to our community through their tireless dedication.”
While Sundre’s department has experienced lots of turnover over the years as volunteers come and go with life’s changes, serving with a handful of resolute members has been great, said Butts.
“The guys that have stuck it out over the years and that I’ve gotten to know, I couldn’t ask for a better crew,” he said.
Despite sometimes dealing with difficult situations, they always pull together to get the job done in a professional manner, he said.
“I’m very proud of them.”
The passage of time and stories shared along the way only further solidifies the bonds they have built as firefighters, not only in Sundre but across Alberta as well. Those connections create a comradeship, he said.
“Doesn’t matter if you’re a volunteer or full time.”
Working alongside such people keeps him passionate about firefighting after so many years, he said.
Missing out on certain family occasions to respond to emergencies where volunteer firefighters might well find friends or family in distress is not something everybody can do. Such situations, he said, can get personal, and dissociating with emotions that can cloud judgment is a challenge.
“It takes a special person,” he said.
“It’s very devastating to see people you know going through that, let alone people you don’t know.”
But living in a small, close-knit community, people tend to recognize the members of the fire department. And sometimes, strangers come out of the blue to pat volunteers on the back to express gratitude, he said.
“That makes your day. That’s what keeps us doing what we do. Those thank yous go a long way.”
Additionally, unwavering family support helps tremendously, he said, adding the first thing he typically wants to do after getting home from a bad call is to hug his daughter.
“It just makes you feel better.”
Gamble agreed responding to emergencies with personal ties is the toughest part of the job, but that random expressions of gratitude and being able to help people in a time of need make the effort worthwhile.
“For me, it’s a lifestyle — I’ve always enjoyed it,” said Gamble, adding he has for some 25 years slept with a radio near his bedside, prepared to respond on a moment’s notice in the middle of the night.
Working cohesively as a crew with the other volunteers also creates an unbreakable camaraderie, he said.
“There’s no hero firefighter — there’s a team. Nobody can do anything by themselves out there,” he said.
“We’ve all seen a lot of things and gone through a lot of things together.”
Many of the members voluntarily pursue additional training. That knowledge and experience represent valuable assets for a department such as Sundre’s, which responds to a wide range of emergencies from motor vehicle collisions to water rescues as well as backcountry wildfires, he said.
“We train for all of it — we never stop learning,” he said, adding he continues to take on new courses after all these years and that like Butts, he’s not sure where the time has gone.
“Now, we’re the old guys!”
