News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Volunteer firefighters' rewards come in the satisfaction of helping their community and from the respect of their comrades. Last month, the Cloverdale Rural Fire Protection District honored their own at their annual awards banquet held at the Sisters Rodeo clubhouse.
Firefighters John Thomas and Jim Corfield were cited for performance beyond the call of duty for th
eir actions at the Simnasho blaze on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation last summer.
According to Cloverdale Fire Chief Chuck Cable, Thomas and Corfield were manning a water tender at a stage in the battle where resources on the front lines were stretched thin.
When a house was threatened by advancing flames, Thomas and Corfield got the green light from their team leader to fight the blaze with the water tender -- designed to provide water to other engines -- not for fighting fires on its own.
"The house would have been lost if they had not made that stand with the water tender," Cable told The Nugget.
Thomas was also honored as Firefighter of the Year for his outstanding attendance and response record and for his efforts in establishing an in-house CPR program for the department. Thomas was also instrumental in launching a fund-raising campaign which is currently underway to provide the department with automated external defibrillators.
Corfield was named Rookie of the Year.
Bob Sherman, last year's Rookie of the Year, was recognized this year for his community service with Habitat for Humanity.
Don Owen was named Officer of the Year. According to Cable, the service required of officers in the
fire protection district is very demanding of their time and efforts.
Dave Harris was honored for outstanding performance of duty and Matt Cyrus received a commemorative fire ax for his 15 years of service to the fire protection district.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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