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Washington Evening Journal
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Washington, IA 52353
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Fire department welcomes new truck and new chief with old traditions
The community helped Mt. Pleasant Fire Department celebrate new beginnings with a transfer of command, truck blessing, and push in ceremony
MT. PLEASANT — Last week the Mt. Pleasant Fire Department officially welcomed not only its new firetruck, but its new chief in a ceremony Wednesday evening following the city council meeting.
“Our fire service is rich in traditions and has a history so fascinating that as a firefighter, young or old, the more you dig into it, the more you cannot get enough of it,” Former Mt. Pleasant Fire Chief Drew Schumacher began the ceremony outside the fire station.
In consideration of these traditions, the evenings celebrations included an official Transfer of Command, blessing of the new firetruck, and Push In ceremony.
“The City of Mt. Pleasant is well served by the fire department in general,” Schumacher said. “Our firefighters, our officers and our chief officers are beyond compare. Firefighters are some of the most selfless public servants you will ever encounter, willing to go where they are needed, sometimes ignoring the dangers.”
Schumacher passed the torch of fire chief onto Anthony Blint and encouraged him to “exemplify the following: care about others first, create a shared vision, model the way, empower others, express appreciation, admit when you are wrong, seek advice and input, treat others with dignity and respect, and lead with We and not I.”
To mark the change of command Schumacher presented Blint with a fire ax as a symbol of fire service which stands ready and depicts strength, confidence, and courage. Schumacher then invited Blint’s wife and son forward for the pinning ceremony.
Following the ceremonial shift in command, St. Michael’s Episcopal Church Reverend Wayne Kamm, along with monk and firefighter Joe Campbell, performed a blessing of the department’s long-awaited new firetruck.
Kamm thanked the fire department for their willingness to return to the tradition of blessing the firetruck. He and Campbell anointed multiple points of the truck with oil and prayed for the truck and the firefighters that would use it before everyone in attendance came together to push the truck into its new home in the building.
This $1,810,000 truck comes to the Mt. Pleasant Fire Department after two years of work to replace a 1990 aerial. The purchase of the new Midmount Ascendant aerial was approved by the Mt. Pleasant City Council in November 2022, but the department had to practice patience as the truck was built from scratch according to the truck committee’s specifications.
“Since 1869, we have evolved into a state-of-the-art department,” Schumacher said. “We have challenged ourselves to meet the ever-changing needs of our community and we all have shown great resolve as we navigate into modern times.”
This truck will help the department continue to do this with the ability to seat five firefighters and carrying capacity of 300 gallons of water.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com
