The DeKalb County Fire Department honored one of the station commanders during Saturday night’s annual banquet.
The Smithville Marine Station Commander award was presented to Frank Rodegeb, Station Commander at the Temperance Hall Station. Chris Allen of Smithville Marine and DCFD Captain Blake Cantrell made the presentation. Wilson Bank & Trust was the program headlining sponsor.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Andrew Harvey is the Liberty State Bank Officer of the Year presented by Rhonda Caplinger and Noah Roberts of Liberty State Bank and DCFD Assistant Chief Anthony Boyd. Alex Woodward of the Cookeville Station was honored with the DeKalb Funeral Chapel “Git R Done” Award presented by Shannon Estes of DeKalb Funeral Chapel and Captain Brian Williams.
Banquet program emcee Alex Woodward made the award announcements except for his own award which was done by Captain Brian Williams.
The Station Commander award recipient is chosen by the fire department’s officers. Considerations for this honor include meeting or exceeding the following standard responsibilities of the Station Commander position:
- Leadership at the station level – setting the example for members
- Oversight and accountability of the station and equipment maintenance
- Loss Prevention
- Membership communication and engagement
- Community Involvement
- Participation and attendance at monthly officers’ meetings
- Understanding and communicating department guidelines and policies, and
- Timely submission of incident reports and monthly maintenance checklists and mileage logs
Based upon these measures, the officers selected Temperance Hall Station Commander Frank Rodegeb as the recipient of the Smithville Marine DeKalb County Fire Department Station Commander of the Year award.
*2024 Liberty State Bank Officer of the Year Award.
Lieutenant Andrew Harvey has earned the Liberty State Bank Officer of the Year Award.
This honor goes to a recipient exclusively selected from officers of the department who serve at the rank of lieutenant or above and for achievements in training attendance, incident response, and community service.
“Lieutenant Harvey is being awarded for his commitment to service in the community beyond the fire service. He is known for his fostering spirit to protect lives and property from fire-related incidents as well as other avenues of service, such as changing a tire for an individual on the side of the road. Andrew actively participates in the DESA events serving those families in need throughout the community,” said Woodward.
“A notable example of Lieutenant Harvey’s commitment to fire service is the implementation of the Fire Safety Education program which provides safety training for individuals in the local schools, community centers and neighborhood gatherings. He also is committed to the installation process for community members that need a working smoke alarm. Andrew helps organize the installation process, either by doing it himself or delegating to another firefighter, to help individual households by having properly installed and working alarms, decreasing the risk of fire-related fatalities. He demonstrates a consistent dedicated role in the recruitment and retention efforts of the department. Lieutenant Harvey was instrumental in organizing a dinner to show appreciation for our Rehab team and their families. He is also instrumental in educating and engaging new recruits into their roles, with education and station visits. Andrew uses his vast amount of knowledge in teaching new recruits fundamental knowledge in the 16-hour orientation class as well as assisting with the Citizens Fire Academy,” Woodward continued.
“Despite the time and commitment shown to the fire department and members of his community, Lieutenant Harvey balances his family responsibilities caring for his four children and supporting his wife at home. He displays time management and dedication to both his professional and personal life setting a remarkable example for others”.
“These examples are just some of the characteristics and attributes that Officer of the Year Andrew Harvey displays for both members of the fire department and the community. Andrew’s consistent and impactful community service reinforces the DeKalb County Fire Departments mission which is to serve with honor, integrity, and compassion,” said Woodward.
*2024 DeKalb Funeral Chapel “Git R Done” Award
The 2024 DeKalb Funeral Chapel “Git R Done” Award went to Alex Woodward of the Cookeville Highway Station.
This award goes to a county firefighter based on community service, special projects within the fire department other than fire calls, special events such as fundraisers, and actions/accomplishments above and beyond normal to promote the success and image of the fire department.
“Alex has served his community in various ways over the past year. He has participated in the 2024 DeKalb emergency Services Associations meal delivery for the needy at both the Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve events in which both times more than 1000 meals where prepared and delivered. Woodward also spends countless hours volunteering his time with the Smithville Fiddlers’ jamboree and the DeKalb County Habitat for Humanity”, said Captain Brian Williams
“Alex serves as our Citizen Fire Academy Coordinator and sacrificed countless hours of his personal time to organize, plan, and present lesson plans for the 6-week academy. He serves on the Water Supply Equipment Task Force and has assisted with budgeting and acquisition of water supply equipment. Woodward has dedicated many hours working on our fundraising and project development for DeKalb Fire Inc. which supports the DCFD,” said Captain Williams.
“Alex has been very instrumental in helping plan, organize and fund our annual Awards Banquet. He has used his relationships in the community to successfully acquire many new banquet sponsors that makes this event and awards possible. Woodward is always going above and beyond to share his financial skills to help us budget and fund our special events. He has also been very successful in helping find funding for training facility projects, Water supply projects, and our annual awards banquet”.
“If you look at Alex’s accomplishments its easy to see that his actions go above and beyond in demonstrating a distinct pattern of community service, while he fulfills his assigned duty requirements and fire calls. His integrity, professionalism, respect, and accountability align with our department’s mission, vision and values, which has resulted in a positive reflection on the DCFD,” added Captain Williams.
*Safe Industries sponsored 100% training awards
Safe Industries sponsored 100% training awards which were presented to the following 27 DeKalb County Firefighters:
Justin Bass, Anthony Boyd, Blake Cantrell, Riley Fuson, Donny Green, Luke Green, Alvin Gunkel, Alyssa Harvey, Andrew Harvey, Kyle Hovey, Donnie Johnson, Ken Kobie, Will Odom, Matt Olson, Lauren Ostrander, Andy Pack, Cheyenne Phalin, Steven Phalin, Terry Phillips, Frank Rodegeb, Robert Sartin, Eric Snow, Airiana Stone, Calvin Tramel, Haston Waggoner, Brian Williams, and Alex Woodward.
*B&B Emergency Equipment sponsored 75% training awards
B&B Emergency Equipment sponsored 75% training awards which were or will be presented to the following 16 DeKalb County Firefighters (some were absent from the banquet Saturday night to receive their award):
Clayton Anstis, Triston Brandon, Bill Brown, Luis Caceres, Keith Elkins, Christina Hovey, Dustin Johnson, Heather Lader, Jordan Lader, Harley Lawrence, Austin Ostrander, Billy Parker, Kari Patrick, Shawn Puckett, Blake Reffue, and Steve Repasy.
