Politics & Government

Outgoing Orland Fire Trustees Say Goodbye at Last Meeting

Martin McGill and Glenn Michalek noted disagreements with fellow board members over the last two years, but also acknowledged the board's ability to come together.

Glenn Michalek and Martin McGill served as Orland Fire Protection District board trustees for the last time on April 23.

Both were presented with “appreciation of service” awards at the meeting, and spoke highly of district staff and firefighters.

“I want to thank you for letting me be a part of your family these years,” McGill said. “The administrative staff was always there when I needed you.”

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McGill also thanked the Orland Fire chiefs for keeping the district “headed in the right direction” and offered “best wishes” to the remaining trustees.

Michalek, a former firefighter, also thanked chiefs, administrative staff and firefighters, noting “firefighters have always been close to my heart.”

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“Board, I won’t say never, but we don’t see eye to eye on a lot of items, and things like that but we always struggled through everything to come up with a solution,” Michalek said.

Looking back on extensive changes in the district, especially since the 2011 election, both said they never lost faith in the district’s ability to perform as emergency responders.

“I can say when the siren went off they were all there 100 percent,” McGill said. “When you were in dire need for a paramedic, and that red truck pulled up, you sighed with relief.”

Michalek and McGill both cited the initial hire of 11 firefighters approved before current trustees Blair Rhode and Chris Evoy were elected in 2011, and then put on hold after they assumed seats on the board, as a key point of disagreement.

Evoy and Rhode replaced then-board president Pat Maher, who chose not to run for re-election, and Bob Cacciato. Current board president Jim Hickey originally voted in favor of the hire and then later changed his vote after the new trustees joined in 2011. Several other staffing changes were made directly after Rhode and Evoy joined, including the eventual leveraged retirement of Chief Bryant Krizik.

“Everything in the fire service costs money,” Michalek said. “Certain areas you want to save money and they didn’t want to hire 11 guys, but I did. They found out after time that we did need to hire 11 guys. Unfortunately by the time they decided to hire 11, we could’ve hired 16.”

Michalek said that services such as fire and police should not be “skimped on” to maintain “high standards.”

Hickey also acknowledged disagreements with the outgoing trustees when presenting the awards.

“We didn’t always see eye to eye, and had spirited disagreements,” Hickey said. “But in the end we did what’s right for the district. We cut back spending and reduced the budget significantly.  It was not easy.”

McGill and Michalek lost bids for re-election to .

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