June 14, 2006

Published in Wake Forest, NC

            The current chief, David Williams Jr., was part of the search committee for his replacement and will remain as the assistant chief after Swift takes over on July 3.

            Swift will take over a department with 76 personnel – 35 paid firefighters, 39 volunteers and two medical responders.

            “What was important to us, that they have experience with volunteer and paid” staff, Thomas Walters, chairman of the board, said. Not all departments have a mixture of paid and volunteer staff, and the Wake Forest department prides itself on being able to mix the two harmoniously to provide professional fire prevention and protection.

            Another reason for Walters to say “He is such the right guy for this department” is that Swift began his fire experience in the Explorer program. The Wake Forest department has always encouraged and fostered young people and runs a junior fire program for high school students.

            Swift, who has been in fire service since the fall of 1979, has been with the Gastonia Fire Department since 1987. He is captain of technical rescue operations and battalion chief for a shift. He has been teaching fire and rescue operations for 12 years and has a degree in fire protection technology. He is earning a degree in emergency management. During his career, he has received 30 commendations and awards.

            “He’s huge on training from a safety standpoint. That’s very important to our department. He’s someone who’s going to get right in there with the firemen and do the job,” Walters said.

            Along with a highly qualified new chief, Walters said, the search committee also found “David (Williams) was doing a really good job.” Williams has been following the plan for expansion and improvement laid out by the late chief, Jimmy Keith. The interviews and information they found during the search validated what the department had been doing. “It really made me feel good about the job David has done.”

            The search committee was headed by Richard Stinnett and included Williams and Walters along with Bob Bridges, Joel Keith, Lyman Franklin, Stanley Denton, Wayne Burton for the paid staff and Gary Sullivan representing the volunteers. Walters said they advertised “all over the country,” including Monster.com and firenews.net, where Swift saw the ad.     

            They received resumes from “incredibly qualified people,” about 60 in all. That was narrowed to 20 who they interviewed, then to six, then three. Among the talents the committee looked for was the ability to make public presentations using PowerPoint.

            Swift will receive a $5,000 moving allowance and his starting salary will be $68,000 in a job classification that ranges from $54,000 to $82,000, giving him room to grow.

            He will not be on hand Thursday night at Station #1 on East Elm Avenue for the Business After Hours the fire department is sponsoring with the Wake Forest Chamber of Commerce, and neither will that ladder truck that was Jimmy Keith’s dream. But you will be able to see a picture of the truck, which should be delivered at the end of the month.

            It cost a whopping $850,000 equipped, but it will be worth it from a safety standpoint. The houses in today’s subdivisions have high, steeply pitched roofs facing in several directions. Firemen cannot use the roofs, as they did with ranch and smaller houses, to reach the source of fires. “It will keep these guys safe in the basket.”

            Along with the new ladder truck, the department is planning to hire new personnel, some of whom will staff the third fire station to be built on Kearney Road near Wake Union Church Road on land donated by Jim Adams. At the same time, the department is beginning plans for a fourth station.