Watersmeet Township Fire Chief Receives State Recognition

WATERSMEET TOWNSHIP, MI - Monday, June 29, 2009 - On Sunday, June 28, 2009, Watersmeet Township Fire Chief Richard Caudill received the Public Service Firefighter of the Year Award from the Michigan State Firemen’s Association at their 134th Annual Conference in Paw Paw, Michigan. This award recognizes firefighters and/or fire officers for outstanding service or duties above and beyond that normally expected of a good firefighter. These activities could include fire prevention work; education; outstanding community or humanitarian service in his or her capacity as a firefighter. Chief Caudill exhibits all of these qualities and more.

Chief Caudill was nominated for this award by a team of individuals including members of his department and retired officials from the Michigan Fire Fighters Training Council. Chief Caudill has been a member of the Watersmeet Township Fire Department for 37 years with the last 19 years as chief. Chief Caudill is committed to training and fire safety – not only within his department, but throughout the state and specifically throughout the Upper Peninsula. In the early 1990, Chief Caudill became a certified instructor through the Michigan Fire Fighters Training Council. Chief Caudill travels all over the State of Michigan and Northern Wisconsin to attend training classes, participate in instructor train-the trainers, and take part in seminars that would keep his skills sharp as well as enable him to instruct courses. Many of these trips are on his own time and at his own expense.

Chief Caudill became a Training Coordinator for the Michigan Fire Fighters Training Council and has served in this capacity for over ten years. Chief Caudill is interested in maintaining certified instructors throughout the Upper Peninsula by mentoring new instructors, assisting instructors and proctoring exams in nine of the fifteen counties in the Upper Peninsula. In addition to his Training Coordinator duties, Chief Caudill is an active instructor, who traveling to teach many times when no one else will. He is the current Vice President of the Upper Peninsula Fire Chief’s Association.

Letters of support from the Watersmeet community highlighted Chief Caudill’s public service and commitment to community as well as his humanitarian side. Watersmeet Township Supervisor Frank Kuchevar stated in his letter of support: “Richard’s contributions have also reached outwardly into other communities, counties, and the state arena as well. Richard is well known in the area for his related educator experience in the field of fire and safety. He has served his community by serving elected terms for the local Township government Board of Trustees and the local School Board.”

School Superintendent George Peterson stated: “Dick is always there for the school whenever we ask him to present a program for Fire Prevention Week, CPR Training, Pandemic Flu Exercises or just being a strong Nimrod supporter.”

Watersmeet Fire Department Safety Officer, Parnell Basanese gives insight to Chief Caudill’s humanitarian side: “He is a very compassionate individual who gives 110% to anything that he is involved with. There was an instance where a family in town who had nine children at home and they had a house fire on Christmas Eve. The fire totaled the upstairs of their home displacing family members to friends and relatives. Chief Caudill went home from the fire and got to work on his computer to find out where and how to get this family in need some help – on Christmas Day, the Red Cross was in Watersmeet to present the family with money for food and clothing for their children. As I said before, the Chief takes everything to heart and treats everyone like family so therefore he does not stop when he hangs his gear at the fire hall. Sometimes this is just the beginning.”

Chief Caudill is committed not only to assuring that the Watersmeet Fire Department has adequate equipment and facilities, but also that all departments in the Upper Peninsula have the equipment they need. Chief Caudill seeks out departments who are getting new hoses, turnout gear, etc. and contacts them to find out what they are planning to do with the old. In his world, there’s always a way to recycle equipment and send it on to departments in need. Whether it is hose and nozzles donated from the Saginaw area, or turnout gear and SCBA’s from Rockford, Chief Caudill has or knows of a department that can use the equipment and finds a way to have it brought to the Upper Peninsula for free.

Chief Caudill has successfully written and administered grants for the Watersmeet Fire Department through the Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program and the USDA Rural Development Grant Program which brought much needed vehicles, equipment and facilities to the department including a rescue vehicle, JAWS equipment, SCBA (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus), air compressor, and a Thermal Imaging Camera.

Throughout his public service career, Chief Caudill has remained a strong family man. Chief Caudill (Dick) and the love of his life Jane, were married for 43 years before Jane passed away in 2005. Chief Caudill has five children, twenty grandchildren, and eight great-grand children.

More information on the Michigan State Firemen’s Association: http://www.angelfire.com/mi/michiganstatefiremen/  

The Michigan State Firemen’s Association was organized in 1875 to:

• Invite and urge all members of the fire departments to become members and give their active and or moral support to the cause of safeguarding life and property against fire dangers and any other emergency or disaster.
• Establish harmony of action between member departments; secure and insure protection and success provide pecuniary support for and promote the best interest of all firefighters of the State of Michigan.
• Promote and support legislation that will result in better building construction, greater safety to life and property and to better the conditions of all fire departments and firefighters.
• Actively promote and support the science of fire prevention for the people of Michigan.
• Actively engage with other organizations and agencies, public and private, to provide continuing education to all firefighters in this state.
• Encourage the cultivation of fraternal friendship between the firefighters of the State; establish lines of communications with segments of the fire service that have organized for their own special interests; and to cooperate with other States for our mutual interests, needs, and advancement.
• Do all other things related to the foregoing general purpose as may be permitted by law.