Town of Westlock Fire Chief Stuart Koflick was recognized last month for his excellence and dedication to fire services, something he has been involved with since the young age of 15.
Koflick was awarded the Fire Service Exemplary Service Medal, which is awarded only after demonstrating outstanding commitment to the fire service profession.
“To be recognized for your contributions to the fire service is certainly something that we don’t expect, but to be recognized and to receive an award of such high esteem, I certainly was very, very honoured,” he said.
The presentation ceremony took place in Edmonton on Sept. 14, where dozens of fire services members were recognized for their contributions in front of family, friends and colleagues.
Koflick was appointed fire chief for the Town of Westlock in March 2010, after serving as the emergency services coordinator since January of 2009. He currently holds both positions.
In order to be nominated for the award, one must have a record showing exemplary service, a demonstrated commitment to the profession as well as leadership qualities — all of which the Town of Westlock felt were present when they nominated him last year.
He has been involved with fire services since 1989 when he joined one of the first junior firefighter programs in the province at the age of 15 in the Village of Wabamun, just west of Edmonton.
“When I was younger. in the middle of the night, the fire siren would go off and … some of the firefighters would run to the fire hall, jump on the fire truck and screaming out of town they went,” Koflick said.
“I remember when I was younger, even if I was just hanging out in town or what not, I’d hear the siren and something would just draw me to that sound and draw me to the fire station. I’d bike as fast as I could just to sit on the opposite side of the street and watch the fire trucks go out,” he added.
It was this excitement that first got him interested in joining the junior firefighter program. In his early years with the department, he enjoyed helping out with controlled burns with the department.
“You’d go out and put out fires and we thought that was a blast. I think that kind of put the seeds of growing into the fire service into our thoughts,” he said.
Although he said he can’t quite pinpoint what first drew him to firefighting, he said he knew from a young age that he always wanted to do a few things when he was old enough. These included joining the military, which he did, as well as joining emergency services in some capacity, whether it was becoming a firefighter, police officer or paramedic.
“I think we all get into the emergency services with a few basic things. We want to be able to help people. We want to be able to serve the community,” he said. “The biggest satisfaction for us is just knowing that you’ve helped somebody and knowing that you can contribute to the community.”
The Fire Services Exemplary Service Medal was created in 1985 to recognize full-time and volunteer members of the fire service in the country. Since its creation, more than 4,000 individuals have been recognized throughout the country, including a total of five from Westlock.
Brian Gray was recognized in 1987, followed by Lyle Birnie in 1997, Glen Latimer in 2006, Don Jewett in 2009 and rounding out the quintet is Koflick.
