Three local firefighters have been decorated for their longstanding commitment to the City of Steinbach.

Chief Kelvin Toews says the individuals each received commemorative medals earlier this month. He takes time to list each member’s accomplishments in turn.
robably even more known for her role as our public education person,” adds Toews, “she is in charge of school visits and tours.”

For that service, Toews presented Klassen-Krahn with a 25-year medal on behalf of the Manitoba Association of Fire Chiefs.

That same medal was awarded to Captain Kurt Martens, who Toews says also plays a vital role on the team.

“Along with the extra responsibility of being a captain, he makes sure our equipment is in tip-top shape and is in charge of truck maintenance.”

Finally, Toews says his colleague Pat Peters received the Governor General’s 30-year ribbon. Throughout the past three decades, Peters has spent time as assistant fire chief, radio dispatcher, and department chaplain.

“On a fire scene often people are quite distressed and he helps calm them down and sort of works as a liaison between the fire command and the homeowner,” details Toews. “So he is valuable not only in the role of a chaplain but also on scene.”

According to the chief, firefighters take great pride in becoming seasoned veterans at helping their communities and he was grateful to be able to recognize the milestone. He says having members remain on the force for so many years speaks well of his department.

“We are glad they joined us between 25 and 30 years ago and hopefully we get several more years from them...  it is always an honour for me to have employees that like to stay that long.”

Ordinarily, Toews says he would have held a specific awards ceremony to mark the occasion but, as COVID-19 prevented him from doing so, he hopes to publicly celebrate the firefighters this coming fall.