Fairfax County Fire Officers Association

Registration Now Open for the 2010 Seminar! For More Information and to Register, Click Here!

Welcome From the President

Welcome to the home page of the Fairfax County Professional Fire & Rescue Officers Association. Our organization is a bona fide, recognized employee group within the Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Department. Our Department consists of over 1200 uniformed personnel serving in 37 fire stations with a coverage area of slightly over 400 square miles occupied by over one million full-time residents. Membership in our Association is voluntary, and is limited to career fire and rescue officers of the Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Department (and retired officers, as well). Out of approximately 400 officers in our Department, over 200 are members, and our membership continues to grow.

Our goal for this web site is to provide relevant and pertinent information to our members, prospective members, and fire and rescue service members worldwide. In our Links section you will find websites which lead to information on the latest in educational opportunities, new technology, strategy and tactics, hazards, and miscellaneous items that may be of interest. If you find a link which you think would be of interest to other officers, please e-mail the site address to our Webmaster.

I assumed the position of President in November 2004, having previously served for two years as Vice President. Our Association is actively engaged in many facets of the Department's activities, and most of the Department's Senior Staff are also members of the Association. My personal vow, and that of each of member of our Board of Directors, is that I will represent us to Senior Staff, the Fire Chief, and our elected officials, in a professional, discreet and businesslike manner. This is your Association, and as such, democratic principles apply. I will make every effort to solicit the input of the membership before stating an official position. By the same token, I call upon each of you to be active, provide input when asked, and most importantly to remember that we are professionals and should conduct ourselves in that mode at all times. I look forward to the exciting times that lay ahead, and I thank you for having the faith and confidence in me to carry forward our agenda. more...

President's Message!

Greetings fellow Officers! It appears that the wild winter of 2009-2010 is definitely a thing of the past, leaving quite a few memories in its wake. When was the last time that Virginia National Guard units were housed in County fire stations and ran calls to assist Fire & Rescue assets? Of course, in the wake of the melting snow came the efforts to lobby members of the Board of Supervisors to restore some of the proposed cuts to the FY11 budget. For the second year in a row, the proposed cuts to Fire & Rescue were set to eliminate even more supervisory positions. For the second year in a row, your Officers Association lobbied Board members to save as many officer positions as we possibly could. You will recall in FY10, of the nineteen FRD positions eliminated, eighteen were officer positions. For FY11, the proposed cuts would have been nearly a dozen more officer positions. We considered that to be unacceptable, and we let the Board members know as much.

From our perspective, it really doesn't matter if the positions are vacant or if position abolishment will occur through attrition. Positions lost are positions lost, and no amount of "fuzzy math" can lead to any other conclusion. Positions lost translate to lost opportunity for years to come. Positions lost translate to lack of proper supervisory oversight. Positions lost translate to excessive span of control issues. Most importantly, positions lost equate to a reduction in the service to our employees and the citizens we serve. This message was passed along in a professional, yet very candid, manner.

Recognizing the reality that some items were going to be cut, we made a choice to focus our energies on the restoration of three specific items: the Seventh Battalion management team, staffing for the HazMat units, and the 2nd UFO position. We were able to directly correlate these business needs to dollars that could be restored while sacrificing other items. Frankly, as unfortunate as it was, the elimination of the DFC-Special Projects (created when the Housing Strike Team was established, but unfilled since DFC McKernan moved from that position to DFC-A) was a foregone conclusion. In addition, the Captain II position in Fire Investigations was in a similar category. The fact that it remained vacant for an extended period of time made it an easy target. We also lobbied again, in lieu of position cuts, that a hard look be taken both at recruit school pay for paramedics and the current structure for EMS riding pay (the $2 and $3 per hour premium). While this particular item piqued the interest of several supervisors, it did not find sufficient traction to carry the majority of them. As a direct result, we are losing three (3) Lieutenant positions from the UFO program, and those folks will have to be absorbed by Operations. Again, positions lost = opportunities lost and adverse service impact to our own employees.

As Chief Mastin has pointed out in his e-mail of April 29th, "we still face significant financial challenges in the coming year." In addition, work on the FY12 budget is already underway. The Board and the County Executive want to find a way to give us back our merit increments, but in the absence of a tax increase and additional cuts in other areas, the outlook is bleak for a pay raise. We will continue to lobby for budget cuts that do not result in position elimination, and we will continue to focus most critically on protection of our members in the supervisory ranks.

Looking ahead, we are all set to accept registrations for the 8th Professional Development Seminar coming up October 7 & 8, 2010 at the Tysons Corner Marriott. An Informational Bulletin will soon be released with specific details on how you can apply for FRD funding to attend this premiere educational event. Our speaker line-up this year is as good as ever, with a true "East Meets West" flavor. By continuing to draw speakers from various parts of the country, we enhance the sharing of knowledge and ideas, and we vastly improve attendee networking opportunities. Last year, over 165 fire officers from around the country were in attendance. We are very hopeful to be able to attract as many attendees this year, as well. Keep an eye out for the I.B., and also follow the Association website for more details: www.fairfaxfireofficers.org

In closing, I would be remiss if I did not pass on hearty congratulations to several long-term members of the Officers Association. AFC Dave Rohr has moved on and will become the Chief of Department in Fairfax City in mid-May. AFC Daryl Louder has accepted the Chief of Department position for Contra Costa Fire Protection District in northern California. Finally, AFC John Caussin, past president of the Officers Association, has assumed the lead position in the Operations Bureau. In addition, we have (since my last message was posted) bid farewell to BC Jim Tolson, BC Floyd "Boots" Ellmore, and Capt. Tony Biller, among others. Their contributions to the advancement and improvement of the Officers Association are greatly appreciated.

We should soon know who will be ascending to Assistant Fire Chief for Personnel Services and for Business Services, and we are confident that members of the Association will perform admirably in those roles! We anticipate a process for selection of new Deputy Chiefs, and the FRD has recently concluded delivery of the 2010 Battalion Chief Promotional Exam. The Captain I exam is also on the horizon. Good luck to all Officers Association members on these tests!!!

As spring rolls along, please take time to stop and enjoy this time of year. The dog days of summer will soon be here, and vacation season will be in full swing. Until next time, please continue to take care of yourselves and take care of those entrusted to your supervision.

Officers Association Challenge Coins for Sale!

Just in time for the holidays, the Officers Association Challenge Coin has arrived! These were a hit at the recent seminar, and we are now ready to offer them for sale to the membership at large.

Each coin is $5.00. LT Mike Regan, Training Academy, is your point of contact for all coin purchases.

Please deal directly with Mike on all Challenge Coin sales. Email - michael.regan@fairfaxcounty.gov Phone - (703) 803-3858

Click on the photos for larger images.

Member Dave Conrad Selected as 2010 Firefighter of the Year!

The Officers Association congratulates Captain I David P. Conrad (FS21-A) on his selection as 2010 Firefighter of the Year! The Firefighter of the Year Award is the department’s highest award and was established in 1985 to provide special recognition for outstanding service and in keeping with highest traditions of the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department and the fire service. The 2010 Career Firefighter of the Year ceremony will be held in the Massey Building, A-Level Conference Center, Tuesday, August 31, 2010, at 11:00 a.m. Please come and join us in celebrating Dave's accomplishment!!

Current Department DROP Statistics!

The current numbers of DROP participants listed by rank and month of projected departure now listed in Member News.

Welcome to New Association Members

The following new members were voted in at the 4th Quarter meeting:
Lieutenant Tom Carver
Lieutenant Mike Snapp
Lieutenant Chris Sampl
Lieutenant William Vannoy
Congratulations and welcome!