Fire Department Awards Presented at Township Board Meeting

At the April 12 meeting of the Peninsula Township Board, Fire Chief Fred Gilstorff and Township Supervisor Rob Manigold presented several awards to members of the Peninsula Fire Department.

Gilstorff noted that for the “Rich Vandermey Memorial Firefighter of the Year” award, it was difficult to pinpoint one individual, because so many members did great things throughout the past year. Thus, he named the entire department as Firefighter of the Year.

He said the department has gained lots of new members this past year, with many members stepping up to train new staff. Many members also took multiple challenging classes throughout the year, and newer members completed firefighter and EMT training, comprising hundreds of hours. All passed their exams on first attempts.

“Dealing with the pandemic and all the staffing changes through the year took patience and hard work by every member of the team,” said Gilstorff. “I am deeply appreciative of every member’s dedication to making us a great department and having the positive attitude to keep improving our skills and knowledge.”

Service Awards were given to Cory Reamer (30 years), Grant Blackmer (20 years), and Lt. Nick Haines, Lt. Brent Strom, Lt. Kyle Sarber and Thomas Vandermey (10 years).

Life Saving Awards were given to Lt. Nick Haines, Lt. Brent Strom, Joe Sicoli, Jacob Strait, Cobey Taylor, Tyler Royston, Ethan Passalacqua, Cory Reamer and Griffin Dunn.

Department Citations were given to Joe Sicoli, Jacob Strait, Cobey Taylor, Thomas Vandermey, Walstano Paniagua, Grant Blackmer, Fred Danielson and Griffin Dunn.

Old Mission resident Connie Sargent was also present at the meeting, and thanked the team who came to her assistance during a health crisis. Connie is a retired nurse who’s worked in many departments over the years, including ICU. She praised the team for their quick action and attention to detail and protocol every step of the way.

Congratulations to the entire Peninsula Fire Department!