By Molly Lovell

Staff Writer

Scarborough’s finest were honored during a public safety awards night this past Saturday where police and fire personnel came together with friends and family to receive much deserved recognition and appreciation.

The evening kicked off with a slide show of serious, silly and notable public safety moments of 2007 while songs like “Welcome to the jungle,” “Shiftwork” and “Taking care of business” filled the auditorium at Scarborough High School.

Fire Chief Michael Thurlow began by commending the police and fire departments for working together so cohesively, a relationship he called “unique” compared to units he’s observed elsewhere. 

“We truly do work together side by side every day. It’s something you should all be proud of, I know I am,” he said.

Police Chief Robert Moulton also recognized the strong relationship between the two departments and thanked the town council and Town Manager Ron Owens for support they’ve received.

“For a guy from away, you done good,” Moulton said with a laugh before welcoming a soon to be retiring Owens to the stage.

Owens called both departments the finest he’s ever seen.

“It’s rare to find that kind of cooperation, that kind of comraderie and that kind of working relationship,” he said.

Owens touched on the commitment each employee must give to his or her job. In addition he recognized that commitment often means time away from family.

“Yes, we pay you, but we don’t begin to compensate for the risk and the time spent away from your family or if you are not married, away from the other things that occupy your life – you do it for reasons that go beyond just money. These days it’s getting harder to find individuals who are willing to take time out of their busy lives to do something for their community. A lot of people talk about wanting to do things for their community but, like the Nike slogan: you just do it,” Owens said. 

He quoted writer Leo Rosten, “The purpose of life is not to be happy – but to matter, to be productive, to be useful, to have it make some difference that you have lived at all.”

“Every police officer, firefighter, paramedic and EMT make a difference and that is no better envisioned than when you recognized earlier this evening those who have answered the last alarm or call. They all made a difference,” Owens said.

The night continued with a presentation of awards. Firefighter Clayton Skillin and Captain Bruce Bell both received the Eldred Harmon Award for 50 years of service and Moulton received an award for 30 years of service.

Firefighter and paramedic Jeff Grinnell of Buxton was honored with the department’s Paramedic of the Year award. Grinnell is  Gazette staff writer Stephanie Grinnell’s husband.

“Honestly, I didn’t think I heard it right,” Grinnell laughed. 

“It felt good, kind of humbling. I’ve never received an award like that, it was a weird feeling. I was really shocked,” he said.

Thurlow said one reason Grinnell was being honored with the award was because he’s always a willing teacher and motivator within the department.

“It’s fun mentoring the younger kids out of school,” Grinnell said.

Grinnell said he enjoys taking their book knowledge and combining it with his “street” knowledge to help make them successful, adding that it’s a necessary step in this field because every situation a new firefighter or paramedic experiences is going to be different.

“It’s part of a growth process,” he said.

In recognizing Grinnell, Thurlow also mentioned his positive attitude.

“Honestly, it’s fun to come to work. We do serious stuff, but a good attitude makes the bad calls easier to deal with,” Grinnell said.

These “bad calls,” are what Grinnell said is the most difficult part of his job. 

“When you have a fatality it weighs on your mind, it really does,” he said.

Everyone has their own coping systems, he said, along with the support of the department. When something particularly emotional happens the department conducts a critical stress debriefing where personnel gather at a remote location to be with peers, Grinnell said.

“If you know someone is doing bad you give them a call or show up to check on them. When a fatality happens, you need that support system and need them telling you ‘You did all you could.’ It’s nice to hear,” he said.

On the flip side, Grinnell said the most satisfying part of his job is knowing he’s making a difference.

As an example, Grinnell pointed to a chimney fire he responded to Saturday after the awards ceremony.

“They were just so happy we could show up and help them out. It’s so nice to know you affected someone’s life in some way whether it’s a big deal or a little deal,” he said, adding that pride runs through the entire department.

“We try to treat them like customers,” he said of residents. 

For example, during the chimney fire, Grinnell and those who responded to the call made sure to lay down “salvage covers” to protect the resident’s carpet from soot and mud. They also try to explain to the resident exactly what they planned to do, Grinnell said.

Grinnell said if he could ask the public anything in return, he would like them to understand the amount of training every member must complete to serve the public. He would also ask the public to be considerate of emergency vehicles.

“More firefighters are killed in traffic accidents every year than anything else. Pull to the right and stop, it’s the one thing I wish people would do. Think of it this way, if it was your emergency, you would want people to get out of the way,” he said.

To be successful and happy in this field Grinnell said, “You have to be a person who can deal with people, you need to be level headed and have to be committed.”

He also said one needs to be very intelligent as the amount of schooling and training required to be in the field has increased since he entered roughly 20 years ago. Grinnell has been with the Scarborough Fire Department since 2006, before that, he was the fire chief in Buxton.

One thing that keeps this profession fresh, he said, is that there is no such thing as an average day.

“An average day for us is someone else’s bizzaro day. Sometimes you come back from a call and say, ‘What was that?’ As long as no one was hurt, it’s funny sometimes,” he laughed.

In addition, Grinnell said one needs a strong support system at home.

“It has to be a family thing because you’re away from home so much,” he said.

Grinnell came from a fire service family and compared it to “following in the family business.”

He first stepped into the profession in 1988 as a volunteer and eventually became the first “full timer” in his family. He said the number of people willing to enter the profession either full time, as a call service member or volunteer is dwindling and suspects a couple different reasons for the decrease in people joining the field.

“Family units are not as large as they use to be, not allowing more interest in the field,” he said.

Grinnell also suspects the average family’s way of life is keeping some from entering the field. More often now, he said, both parents work and children are involved in so many activities that by the end of the day, people don’t have time to volunteer for their local fire or police departments.

“I’ve never heard anyone say they hated it or couldn’t stand it, they just don’t have the time or energy,” he said.

What the future holds for those in the field isn’t something Grinnell said can be predicted.

“You can never, ever say you know everything. Change is going to happen. You have to accept it and move ahead,” he said.