Fire chief thanks Calif. university for donation

By Kristina Hernandez
The Redlands Daily Facts

REDLANDS, Calif. — Firefighters thanked the University of Redlands on Monday for its donation toward the department's new ladder truck.

Standing next to the recently christened vehicle, Chief Jeff Frazier shook the hand of university President James R. Appleton while thanking him for the university's contribution.

Frazier also introduced Appleton to members of the Redlands Fire Department, including an intern who attends the university and is learning about firefighting.

The truck has already made a difference to the department by replacing an outdated truck, the chief said.

"The first thing is, it is much more dependable. This vehicle has experienced little very downtime. It remains in service and provides a much better capability," he said. "The primary difference you'll see with this ladder truck besides its capability is the amount of equipment it can carry ... and that ladder is three to four times as strong as the ladder it replaced.

"We're much more confident when our firefighters have to use it that they're going to be safe and come home and be fine."

Appleton said he was excited to receive the recognition and a gift, which included a framed photo of the fire truck.

He said the donation to the ladder truck fund was a "thank you" for the work the department does for the university and the community.

"We benefit by this as a university, and we are grateful and thought we ought to play our 'citizen role,"' Appleton said. "We have a tremendous Town and Gown relationship, and we want to make sure that continues to happen."

About 10 department employees joined Frazier at the ceremony, where Appleton took the time to admire the truck and even sat in the driver's seat to get a feel for the machine and pose for photos.

"It's a proud truck that stands pretty tall," he said. "Well, I suspect if I was 8 years old, I'd be even more thrilled."

Frazier's visit to the university wasn't the only event he attended Monday.

That afternoon, he conducted a badge-pinning ceremony, which featured three promotions and five new hires.

Those promoted were firefighter/paramedic Kelwyn Wild to engineer, firefighter Kevin Johnstone Jr. to engineer and engineer Nathanial R. Bristol to captain.

New hires were Steve Leverette, Lorenzo Rocha, Forrest Munden and Jonathan Hearn.

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