Ron Hope retires as Fire Chief

By Joan Janzen
joanjanzen@yahoo.com

After twenty-three years of serving as Fire Chief of the Kindersley Fire Rescue Brigade, Ron Hope has retired. He is the longest-serving Fire Chief for the Kindersley fire department, having filled the role from 1999 to 2021. Ron initially joined the Kindersley fire brigade in 1981, at the age of 21 years, and never looked back.

He managed to fulfill his responsibilities as a firefighter while working full time and being a single dad of his two sons; quite an accomplishment, to be sure. Consequently, it’s no surprise that his sons have followed in his footsteps; Mitchel serving as Deputy Chief with the Kindersley Fire Department and Lance serving as a Lieutenant with the Outlook Fire Department.

During his four decades of service, he filled many capacities, serving on numerous committees, including the Muscular Dystrophy Committee, Sask. Volunteer Fire Fighters Assoc., Sask Assoc. of Fire Chiefs, the Canadian Assoc. of Fire Chiefs, the Provincial Public Safety Review Committee, and the Provincial Public Safety Review Committee.

Ron willingly filled various roles throughout the years, serving as Rural Fire Secretary, Town Fire Secretary, Public Education Officer, Director of Region 7, and Vice-President of Sask. Assoc. of Fire Chiefs.

While Ron served as Fire Chief, one event Kindersley residents vividly remember occurred in 2010 when the arena burned to the ground, creating a state of emergency. More than sixty volunteer firefighters from seven fire brigades battled the blaze. Some of those volunteers travelled over an hour to get to the fire scene, but at the time, as Fire Chief, Ron acknowledged that their assistance was vitally necessary and appreciated.

Another memorable call to action occurred on October 8, 2020, when the Kindersley Fire Brigade was dispatched to a grain elevator fire in Marengo and volunteer firefighters from four other communities. Thirty-seven hours into the call, the crew finally headed home. Most of the crew hadn’t slept in 30 hours because they had worked their day jobs before responding. After arriving in Kindersley, the exhausted team spent an additional two hours decontaminating all equipment, washing and hanging all hoses and reloading apparatus to be ready for the next call.

Those are just two incidents among many that illustrate the dedicated cooperative efforts of the Kindersley fire brigade and many other fire brigades in the area. As you can see, there are no awards that can adequately compensate for Ron’s long-time dedication and service. However, he did receive many honours throughout his years of working with the department. He was awarded medals/designations in 2006, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2021.

Ron earned his qualifications through the International Fire Service Accreditation Congress in various designations, including Fire Fighter Level 1 & 2, Haz-Mat Awareness & Operations, Fire Service Instructor Level 2 and a certificate in Fire Ground Management. He earned numerous other certifications throughout his time of service.

Ron’s successor as fire chief is Jeff Soveran, who has served as a member of the department for the past 31 years. While Jeff fulfills his new responsibilities, Ron and his wife Shannon can relax and enjoy a well-deserved holiday out of the country.