Member Statement (11 October 2023)

From Hansard (11 October 2023)

 

Recognition of Former Volunteer Fire Chief

Mr. B. McLeod: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize former volunteer fire chief, Rod Appleby. Rod Appleby moved to the village of Caronport in 1979 to teach high school and at the same time began serving as volunteer firefighter. He became fire chief in 2008. Rod has worked to grow the department to ensure his team has the resources to respond to emergencies.

He was instrumental in developing rural emergency site numbers in the RM [rural municipality] of Caron. This innovative emergency planning was the first of its kind in Saskatchewan. Many RMs have since adopted this method of quickly identifying rural locations and providing emergency routing and site plan data.

Rod assisted with transitioning to a new fire chief in April of this year and has maintained his duties as a regular firefighter and first responder. In 2019 Rod received the Governor General’s Fire Services Exemplary Service Medal. Caronport Fire and Rescue and surrounding municipalities recently held a gala to recognize Rod for his faithful service of 44 years. A common phrase that Rod will often say is “maybe I can help you,” along with an occasional dad joke to ease the tension in traumatic situations.

I ask all members to join me in thanking Rod Appleby, seated by his wife and my wife, who does have a name — Marlie Beth — for his significant and continuing contribution to his community and our province. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.