Three new faces for GFD as changing of guard continues

Thursday, December 22, 2016
Rob Frank is sworn in by Mayor Bill Dory as a Greencastle Fire Department captain as Chief John Burgess looks on at City Hall.
Banner Graphic/ERIC BERNSEE

The changing face of the Greencastle Fire Department continued this week with the swearing-in of three new firefighters and the promotion of two others.

In a ceremony at City Hall Tuesday evening, Greencastle Mayor Bill Dory swore in Matt Rubenstein, Tyler Hatfield and Jeremy Gary as new firefighters and presided over the promotions of Rob Frank and Jason Simonson.

Frank has been promoted from lieutenant to captain, while Simonson has been elevated to the lieutenant position.

Jason Simonson is sworn in as a lieutenant for the Greencastle Fire Department by Mayor Dory.
Banner Graphic/ERIC BERNSEE

Mayor Dory welcomed the GFD additions, telling the trio, “you are joining a great profession, gentlemen.”

Dory noted that his father was a career firefighter in Ohio, and he grew up going to the fire station with his dad and riding his bicycle up to the fire station to watch the activity there.

“So it is an honor for me,” the mayor said, “to promote a couple firefighters and swear in three new ones.”

The past two years have seen major changes in the Greencastle department with Bill Newgent retiring last January after 16 years as GFD chief and 23 years as a fireman overall, while 2015 saw the retirements of veteran firefighters Roy Bumgardner and Bob Campbell. Capt. John Shaffer also left the department in the past year for a position at Avon.

“We’ve been really busy hiring new personnel. This year alone we’ve hired four people,” Chief John Burgess told the Banner Graphic, noting that firefighter Darrick Wiatt also began his GFD career in 2016, while Brandon Watson had joined the department right at the end of 2015.

The hiring process can be lengthy, the chief said, noting that it takes two months just for a candidate to take the CPAT (Candidate’s Physical Aptitude Test). Then, if selected, the candidate must qualify for PERF (the Public Employee Retirement Fund) before being officially added to the payroll.

“It used to be the captains would meet and pick the candidate,” Burgess said, “and they’d go to the doctor here in town and get a quick physical. It’s not that way any more.”

Promotions and new additions were the order of the day for the Greencastle Fire Department Tuesday evening. Taking part in the City Hall swearing-in ceremony were (from left) firefighter Jason Simonson, promoted to lieutenant; Tyler Hatfield, Matt Rubenstein and Jeremy Gary, all sworn in as new GFD firefighters; Lt. Rob Frank, promoted to captain; Fire Chief John Burgess and Greencastle Mayor Bill Dory.
Banner Graphic/ERIC BERNSEE

The Greencastle department consists of 17 members. Frank joins Brian Poole and Kyle App as captains, while Simonson joins Kenny Shepherd and Robert Beebe as lieutenants.

Chief Burgess introduced each of the new firefighters with a little back story.

Rubenstein, he noted, “stopped by the firehouse to talk to us one day without any prior training or anything.”

He was interested in fire service, and since he’s been around GFD, Burgess says he’s “been Mr. Gung Ho, trying to learn everything he can.”

Hatfield, meanwhile, came in as a known quantity, having grown up in the Reelsville area and having been a reserve firefighter for three years with GFD.

Gary, Chief Burgess said, showed some real dedication from the outset.

“He came in with a cast on his arm,” the chief recalled, noting that Gary wanted to take the CPAT so badly without delay that “he had his cast cut off and took the test without it.”

”He’s pretty tough,” Burgess said.

Both Gary and Hatfield are National Guard veterans who also served as firefighters in the Guard.

Gary is active in the Guard at present and serves on the Honor Guard at funerals. Hatfield is a combat veteran, having down three tours of duty between Iraq and Afghanistan.

Rubenstein has relocated to Greencastle after living in Zionsville when he initially applied for one of the GFD vacancies. He’s also lived in Oregon and New Jersey.

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