Monday night saw the city of Ocean Shores laud its emergency response personnel as it welcomed new firefighters and police into its ranks, while promoting others.

The city and local firefighters union also jointly announced a resolution of a previous dispute stemming from a hiring issue.

New blood/new leadership

“We have a ton of talent in this building. All of our members have really level heads,” said Assistant Chief Brian Ritter of the Ocean Shores Fire Department in a phone interview. “As our city grows, I’m just looking forward to what the future holds for this organization.”

The fire department welcomed George Foster, Nicholas Frymire and Michael Lundy to its ranks. Fire Chief Mike Thuirer spoke as the new firefighters were pinned by their loved ones and sworn into the department.

“It’s not only to honor them, it’s to honor their family’s sacrifice too,” Ritter said. “In my mind it’s just as important for the family as for the promotion of the firefighter themselves.”

Ocean Shores Fire Chief Mike Thuirer, left, recognizes Kara McDermott, who was recently named the Veterans of Foreign Wars firefighter of the year by the local chapter, on Feb. 13. (Michael S. Lockett / The Daily World)

The fire department also promoted several members. Jake Royer was promoted to captain, filling the vacancy left when Ritter himself was promoted to the newly created assistant chief position, and Brian Shafer was promoted to lieutenant.

“There’s rigorous testing that goes into getting promoted,” Ritter said. “Those guys went through the wringer to get promoted and they came out on top.”

Longtime fire department volunteer Jim Davis was promoted to volunteer assistant chief, a position that helps to organize and support the volunteers in the department, Ritter said.

Kara McDermott was recognized by the city after being named Firefighter of the Year by the local Veterans of Foreign Wars chapter, which occurred in a ceremony last week, The Daily World previously reported. Thuirer spoke of McDermott, who put herself through the required courses before coming to the department instead of waiting for a local spot to open up.

McDermott said she recalled the evening she decided she was going to pull the trigger and commit to becoming a firefighter. Unusual for many life-changing moments, it involved standing in puke.

“I actually remember the moment when I said I was gonna do this, I’m going to go get my EMT. It was St. Patrick’s day,” McDermott said. “I said, this was the best Saturday I’ve had in a while. I went and signed up for an EMT class the next day.”

New Firefighter/EMT George Foster is pinned during a swearing-in ceremony for the Ocean Shores Fire Department by his father, Dave Foster on Feb. 13. (Michael S. Lockett / The Daily World)

McDermott said she’s felt connected to the department ever since Ocean Shores firefighters saved her father’s life 10 years ago as he was suffering from a medical emergency. Now, she’s one of the department’s many talented personnel, bringing versatility and ambition, Ritter said.

“I really look forward to seeing what she accomplishes in the future. She’s a huge asset here,” Ritter said. “It’s people like that, they’re changemakers. We need that here.”

McDermott said she’s hoping to bring the department back out into the public, helping to prevent issues before they threaten the happiness and health of residents.

“My real dream is to bring more public education to the city. Not only fire prevention, but life safety things,” McDermott said. “I think we need to open ourselves back up, let the community come to us.”

McDermott also praised the new firefighters who were sworn into the department Monday night.

“It’s exciting that we have new blood,” McDermott said. “The people we’re bringing in are eager to learn, eager to serve and good to work with.”

Ocean Shores Police Chief Neccie Logan, left, recognizes Sgt. Chris Iversen, who was recently named the Veterans of Foreign Wars police officer of the year by the local chapter, on Feb 13. (Michael S. Lockett / The Daily World)

Police business

The Ocean Shores Police Department had its own members to promote and recognize, as well as a new join for the department. Chief Neccie Logan spoke of Sgt. Chris Iversen, who was recognized by the VFW last week for his long service and for his many surf rescues on Ocean Shores’ deceptively dangerous coast.

“I started out here in Ocean Shores. I moved here from Southern California in 1991-ish,” Iversen said. “I joined the fire department as a volunteer firefighter and first saw the surf rescue team in action. They were like superheroes.”

Joining the police department in 1993, Iversen became part of the surf rescue team.

“I was a member of the team for roughly 15 years,” Iversen said. “We get roughly a dozen surf rescue calls every year. I’ve been involved with rescuing dozens and dozens of people.”

Sgt. Daniel Fode of the Ocean Shores Police Department is pinned by his daughter Dallas during a promotion ceremony on Feb. 13. (Michael S. Lockett / The Daily World)

While the team was disbanded in 2013 over budgetary concerns, Iversen said he hopes to see it return in the future, so that emergency personnel are trained and equipped to save lives in Ocean Shores’ many marine environments.

“We practiced scooping people out of the water from a boat and from personal watercraft, Sea-Doos. How to approach drowning people so they don’t drown you, how to protect yourself,” Iversen said. “The conditions out there, let me tell you, they get very hairy and very scary.”

Officer Daniel Fode was promoted to sergeant, pinned by his daughter Dallas, while Matt Papac, who joined the department as a code enforcement officer and animal control specialist, had been accepted to the department as a uniformed officer and would soon attend the police academy, was sworn in by Logan.

Dispute resolved

The city of Ocean Shores and Ocean Shores Professional Fire Fighters Local 2109 jointly announced an amicable resolution to some issues that had been created during a labor dispute in previous years.

“The city and IAFF Local 2109 have resolved all the pending disputes between them so that both sides can focus on improving services to our residents and building a labor management relationship that is based on trust and mutual respect,” read a joint statement.

The issues were created during negotiations for the creation of the assistant chief position with the fire department, and all outstanding filings with the Washington State Public Employment Relations Commission have been resolved.

“IAFF Local 2109 and Mayor Martin look forward to continuing to work with each other to move forward in a positive and collaborative manner,” the statement read.

IAFF Local 2109 President Corey Kuhl said he was happy to have resolved things amicably with the city, and looks forward to working together to add more positions to keep pace with the city’s call volume and risk profile, around 30 firefighter/EMTs.

“I couldn’t be happier,” Kuhl said. “We couldn’t be happier without more firefighters or first responders.”

Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or mlockett@thedailyworld.com.