photo L-R Firefighter of the Year Engineer Mitch Peterson, Officer of the Year Lieutenant Keith Wendt
Last week Fond du Lac Fire and Rescue held their annual Awards banquet, recognizing members for the service and dedication from events that occurred in 2023.
Officer of the Year– This Officer of Fond du Lac Fire Rescue has taken the lead on several priority projects that greatly affect the daily operations of Fond du Lac Fire Rescue. This year he continued to develop the Cadet/Explorer Program raising the number of students involved to the maximum and beyond, where he had to turn potential explorers away due to the increased capacity. Being able to attract interest in firefighting and public service has been challenging, not just in Fond du Lac but nationwide. This member’s involvement and increased success is a testament to his dedication and excitement for the Explorer Program. Without individuals like him taking the initiative to motivate others, Fond du Lac Fire Rescue would not be where it is today. He also continues to be a shift leader in the area of Hazardous Materials on C Shift, coordinating the training and operations for the shift. The year ended with this officer working with Office Manager on the development of the daily, weekly, and monthly inventory in the Fireworks Program. This was a daunting project, which took hours to learn and develop for the electronic monitoring and retention of these records. He continues to streamline this area so that each member of the department has a program that is easy to use and changes are easy to track for the department records. Lt Wendt has also continued to be a strong presence and officer at Station 1. He has been a great mentor to the younger members of his shift and also to the newly promoted Lieutenants.
For these reasons, we are proud to name Lieutenant Keith Wendt the Officer of the Year.
Firefighter of the Year- This member of Fond du Lac Fire Rescue has repeatedly gone above and beyond to improve operations for the department. Any time there is a special project or something that will be very challenging he is the go-to person for these projects. This member has worked on countless projects this last year and saw that they were all completed. This member saw a need and developed a better way to organize the SCBA equipment. He put a large amount of time into developing a better system, finding a company to manufacture his idea and then implementing the new storage system for the SCBA bottles. On a Saturday years ago he took apart an inside door panel on his fire apparatus to make a repair and a short while later ran an ambulance call as effortlessly as he took apart his door panel. I’m not sure where he received all of his knowledge or if he just makes winging-it look good. Either way Fond du Lac Fire Rescue gets to benefit from it. It is impossible to list all the projects that he has both taken on and completed. It is skills like these that truly make the fire service unique, the ability to troubleshoot and solve issues over many different items is a niche that not everyone possesses. This is clearly evident in the fact that for most projects around the station he is the guy to get it done. When you think of the term MacGyver-that’s Mitch Petersen.
For the above mentioned reasons we are honored to name Engineer Mitchell Petersen the Firefighter of the Year.
Paramedic of the Year- This member of Fond du Lac Fire Rescue stepped forward in a time of transition and significantly influenced the success of two new firefighter/paramedics. Lieutenants in charge of EMS are responsible for many different facets of the EMS work that is performed on a daily basis, including the on-boarding of new firefighter/paramedics. When a vacancy opened in the Lieutenant of EMS position, the need for a member to fill that void was created. This member, without hesitation, agreed to step in and fill the void. This member successfully navigated the on-boarding process for two new paramedics allowing for their successful completion process. This process took a significant amount of time and effort to complete and definitely went beyond what this member was expected to do on a normal basis. Additionally, Jake has taken on several leadership roles including being the lead for the Tactical Emergency Medical Services Team; is the team leader for the Shift A Technical Rescue Team; and is heavily involved in the Wisconsin Task Force One Team. When members of the department step up into roles that they normally aren’t accustomed to, it really shows the versatility of our members and the commitment they have to the overall success of their peers and the department as a whole. This member truly exhibited this type of commitment to excellence that has become the standard for Fond du Lac Fire Rescue. The impact that these efforts have had to this organization and to the community are highly significant.
For the dedication and perseverance exhibited by this member, it is our honor to name Jacob Fisher the Paramedic of the Year.
Excellence Award– This individual has gone above and beyond in the training and development of the department’s involvement in Wisconsin Task Force 1 and the Technical Rescue Team. Joining the Task Force, which is comprised of members from several fire departments across the state, brings additional training and proficiency to aspects of rescue that not only benefits the state but also the community. This member has contributed countless hours to the training and operations of both our Tech Rescue Team and our members that are on the State Task Force. This member has procured equipment, provided expert training and has been an invaluable member in moving these programs forward. He has exhibited great attention to detail and continues to promote the highest of standards for both the training and the equipment we use in emergencies. The work he has done and the knowledge that he has contributed have been instrumental in the success of the program.
For these reasons, it is our honor to recognize Lieutenant Shawn Kneeland with the Award of Excellence.
Excellence Award– The following member stepped in to help in a time of need to assist in on-boarding a fellow firefighter/paramedic that had recently completed his paramedic training. This member left his normal station and relocated to Station 1 in order to mentor this new paramedic and prepare him to be placed on full duty as a paramedic for Fond du Lac Fire Rescue. Training new members is a technically challenging role, paramedics have the training from their respective schools but acclimating these members to how Fond du Lac Fire Rescue operates is another aspect that has many objectives. When training new members there is a balance that has to be achieved when explaining or correcting errors that occur. Trainers need to be able to get our methods across without intimidating or demeaning the recruit. This member was a perfect fit for the recruit, his sense of humor and charismatic way he trains stood out in the recruits overall success. This member had so much tact in how he trained that he could have told the recruit to go to hell and the recruit would’ve looked forward to the trip. This member stepped up in the role and navigated the process, which allowed for the successful completion of the paramedic requirements for the new member.
For these reasons, we are honored to recognize Firefighter Paramedic Max Blitzke with the Award of Excellence.
Award of Merit– On January 21st, 2024 two members of Fond du Lac Fire Rescue were each respectively driving to work from south of Fond du Lac. While in their commute one member came upon a car accident in which a female was ejected from the vehicle and was laying on the median’s white line, this line separates the median from the passing lane of the Interstate. As this member rendered aid a second member of Fond du Lac Fire Rescue arrived and assisted with care of this patient. Both off-duty members placed their safety secondary to the patients, working immediately next to the passing lane of the Interstate with traffic rushing past to aid in the care of the female. The dedication and care exhibited by these members is truly a testament of the character that is instilled in each of our members and is proudly displayed in the community every day, both on and off duty. In instances like these, off duty EMS workers are not obligated to stop and render aid, the fact that our members often times find themselves in these situations and act to assist in providing care shows the level of commitment to care for people in their time of need.
It is our Honor to recognize Joe Goldapske and Anthony Gonzalez for their efforts that day and for those efforts they receive the Award of Merit.
Unit Citation- October 21st, triple overdose with PNB patient. Multiple members of B Shift
Unit Citation- May 19th, Armed barricaded subject that intentionally set his home on fire with gasoline. Multiple members of A Shift
