Story and photos by Julie Carasone
On Saturday evening, the Stafford Volunteer Fire Department gave out awards and swore in officers.
In 2018, the Stafford Fire Department responded to 246 calls for service.
28 fire calls, 185 rescue calls, 10 hazmat, 13 service calls, and 10 good intention calls.
The Top Ten Responders were:
Stephanie Call, 127
Randall Henning, 120
Matt Hendershott, 111
Mark Dougherty, 58
Timothy Eckdahl, 56
Ken Collins, 50
Donald Hall, 35
Ronald Bobo, 33
Brian Pocock, 29
Samantha Call, 26
With over 1,505 total training hours for the entire Fire Department, Dean Brooks had the most training hours at 138.
Mark Dougherty, 4th Assistant Chief, received the 2018 Chief’s Award.
“Despite major health issues, this firefighter has managed to still make the top 10 Responder List, maintained his position as master mechanic and has even taken on the old/new role as an assistant chief. He is the go to person for many people in our fire department, new members go to him along with seasoned members for his expert knowledge in all facets of our job. He embodies what a Stafford Fire Department firefighter should be,” says Stephanie Call, Fire Chief.
2nd Assistant Chief, Matt Hendershott, nominated Samantha Call as Firefighter of the Year.
“Samantha, as a junior member, has shown her enthusiasm for the department, as well as handling her commitment to the department and her school and work obligations. She also set a standard for the new recruits, that will prove difficult to fill,” says Hendershott.
Samantha Call, 18, is a Senior at LeRoy Junior Senior High School. She says she became involved in being a firefighter because its like a family business and she sees what her family does.
Call says that Le Moyne College in Syracuse is her top choice and she plans on becoming a Physicians Assistant. “I plan to continue this the rest of my life and doing it here in Stafford,” says Call.