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New chief of Rexburg-Madison County Emergency Serv
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REXBURG - The new fire chief in town took time last week to discuss his goals and plans as he settles into the job.
Corey R. Child (shown here), formerly of Gustavus, Alaska, has taken the post with the retirement of Spencer Larsen on Aug. 31.
Child said although he misses Alaska, he sees the move to Rexburg as a great opportunity for himself and his family.
"We're coming to a good place for our family and it's centrally located for our extended family," he said.
He has 18 years of experience in fire fighting and emergency medical services, both professionally and as a volunteer.
While in Alaska he served as the chairman of the Advisory Board of the Gustavus Fire Department. He was also general manager of Aramark's Glacier Bay Lodge and Tours.
Child said he has both short-term and long-term goals for the department.
"I see that Chief Larsen has done a tremendous amount since the combining of the two departments - ambulance and fire," he said. "I'll take a fresh look at things and see if I can pull things off as well as he did. A fresh perspective is always worthwhile."
He said his immediate goals are getting to know each employee in the department on a personal level, getting acquainted with the people and leaders of the community, learning more about the area served by the department and finding out more about the fiscal side of his responsibilities.
He then summarized his goals for the next year.
"I believe we need to maintain a sense of readiness in four areas," he said. "First the people - the employees, the firefighters and paramedics - are trained adequately to assist the public. Are they paid adequately and do they have proper benefits?
"No. 2 - maintain a state of readiness with our equipment - from screwdrivers and chain saws to fire engines. That goes for the whole spectrum. It's huge - the taxpayers have paid for the equipment, and we want to keep it up so it works for them when we need it.
"No. 3 - maintain a state of readiness in operational accuracy. When we get to the scene we need to be totally prepared to perform the tasks that are required.
"Fourth - maintain a state of readiness administratively. Are we within our budget? Are the bills paid and are we properly insured? The whole behind- the-scenes part of running a fire department - we want to be ready so that when called upon we can serve."
Child said he is impressed by the quality of the employees in the department.
"There are only a few professions where 100 percent of the time you're called to unfavorable circumstances," he said. "It's a unique breed of people who serve simply because of the love of serving and wanting to help. My hat goes off to our full-time employees and paid-call firefighters who do just that."
Corey R. Child (shown here), formerly of Gustavus, Alaska, has taken the post with the retirement of Spencer Larsen on Aug. 31.
Child said although he misses Alaska, he sees the move to Rexburg as a great opportunity for himself and his family.
"We're coming to a good place for our family and it's centrally located for our extended family," he said.
He has 18 years of experience in fire fighting and emergency medical services, both professionally and as a volunteer.
While in Alaska he served as the chairman of the Advisory Board of the Gustavus Fire Department. He was also general manager of Aramark's Glacier Bay Lodge and Tours.
Child said he has both short-term and long-term goals for the department.
"I see that Chief Larsen has done a tremendous amount since the combining of the two departments - ambulance and fire," he said. "I'll take a fresh look at things and see if I can pull things off as well as he did. A fresh perspective is always worthwhile."
He said his immediate goals are getting to know each employee in the department on a personal level, getting acquainted with the people and leaders of the community, learning more about the area served by the department and finding out more about the fiscal side of his responsibilities.
He then summarized his goals for the next year.
"I believe we need to maintain a sense of readiness in four areas," he said. "First the people - the employees, the firefighters and paramedics - are trained adequately to assist the public. Are they paid adequately and do they have proper benefits?
"No. 2 - maintain a state of readiness with our equipment - from screwdrivers and chain saws to fire engines. That goes for the whole spectrum. It's huge - the taxpayers have paid for the equipment, and we want to keep it up so it works for them when we need it.
"No. 3 - maintain a state of readiness in operational accuracy. When we get to the scene we need to be totally prepared to perform the tasks that are required.
"Fourth - maintain a state of readiness administratively. Are we within our budget? Are the bills paid and are we properly insured? The whole behind- the-scenes part of running a fire department - we want to be ready so that when called upon we can serve."
Child said he is impressed by the quality of the employees in the department.
"There are only a few professions where 100 percent of the time you're called to unfavorable circumstances," he said. "It's a unique breed of people who serve simply because of the love of serving and wanting to help. My hat goes off to our full-time employees and paid-call firefighters who do just that."
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