John Davies honored for 50 years as firefighter

Courtesy photo Three generations of fire service are captured as John Davies (left) -- honored March 13 for his 50 years of service with the Fillmore Volunteer Fire Department -- is joined by son and current Fillmore Chief Mike Davies (center) and Crawfordsville firefighter Adam Davies, his grandson.

FILLMORE -- Firefighting must be in the Davies family blood.

Mike Davies currently serves as chief of the Fillmore Volunteer Fire Department. And his son, Adam Davies, is a fulltime Crawfordsville firefighter.

But they haven't got anything on John Davies -- Mike's father and Adam's grandpa -- when it comes to fire service.

Courtesy photo State Sen. Pete Miller (R-Brownsburg, left) honors John Davies for 50 years of service to the Fillmore Volunteer Fire Department during a special ceremony March 13 at the FVFD fire station. Miller sponsored a proclamation during the 2016 Indiana General Assembly, recognizing Davies for his long commitment to service and presenting the Fillmore man with a copy of the proclamation.

Three generations of Davies firefighters were front and center at a special ceremony earlier this week at the Fillmore Volunteer Fire Department station. But it was John A. Davies they all came to honor for his 50 years of service as a volunteer firefighter in his community.

Volunteer firefighters from across the state gathered at Fillmore as District 24 State Sen. Pete Miller (R-Brownsburg) presented Davies with an Indiana State Senate proclamation recognizing and honoring him for a half-century of service as a Fillmore volunteer firefighter.

"Only once in a lifetime can someone claim success for providing a service of 50 years and this year John is one of 54 members of the Indiana Volunteer Firefighters Association (IVFA) that we are proud and honored to announce who is able to make such claim," IVFA president Larry Curl said.

Davies serves as the IVFA's District 11-B secretary, and has also been a lieutenant, captain, assistant chief and chief of the Fillmore department.

Certainly 50 years of volunteer service is no small achievement with having to juggle volunteer duties with a full-time job, other community activity and spending time raising a family, and those who honored Davies Sunday said as much several times over.

Davies, who retired from IBM when the Greencastle plant closed in 1987, was honored for exemplifying the sacrifices and selfless dedication that merit tribute and recognition by citizens of Fillmore and the state of Indiana.

John was joined by family, friends, fellow firefighters and leadership of the IVFA as Sen. Miller presented the Indiana Senate Proclamation.

Davies also received an Indiana House Concurrent Resolution, recognizing and honoring him; a lifetime membership (gold card) to the IVFA; as well as a jacket presented on behalf of his department by son Mike Davies who is following in dad's footsteps as chief of the Fillmore Fire Department. The jacket is embroidered with his name and a notation of 50 years of service on the front with a large Fillmore Fire Department logo on the back.

As everyone congratulated Davies for such a long and distinguished service, he let it be known he is not finished yet. Davies still intends to continue holding his current office as secretary of the Indiana Volunteer Fire Service District 11B.

IVFA president Curl and IVFA District 11B chairman Larry Southard awarded Davies a 50-year membership pin and also a lifetime membership to the IVFA.

In addition to son Mike and grandson Adam, Davies also was joined on his special day by wife Maxine; the Fillmore Fire Department membership; retired Greencastle Fire Chief Bill Newgent; Jefferson Township Chief Rick Cooper; IVFA District 11B Auxiliary members and many other local and district IVFA members.

The awards were followed by dinner provided by Fillmore Fire Department.