New firefighters in town
Grant money allows department to add 3 firefighters to payroll
Stacy Barnes
Three new firefighters are living out their dreams right here in Mustang. Eric Halter, Chris Edwards and Clayton Hart all say they grew up wanting to wear the fireman’s hat. Both Halter and Edwards recently completed training at Eastern Oklahoma County Technology Center in Choctaw, while Hart finished his associate’s degree in Municipal Fire Protection from OSU OKC. All three men say they are happy to be part of the community and it is especially rewarding for Halter who left his job to pursue his dream.
“I quit my job and cashed out my 401K to put everything on the line,” he said. “I kind of hesitated because I had a decent paying job and a family to support.”
But, the 2000 Mustang High School graduate says his risk paid off and now he’s able to raise his son in his hometown while serving the community he loves.
Both Edwards and Hart hale from just up the road in Moore and say they selected Mustang as one of the departments they wanted to work for. After just a few weeks on the job the men say they are continuing to learn Mustang FD operations, but things are a bit better than before.
“At the academy we were 8 to 5 in bunker gear,” said Edwards. “We never came out and we were on breathing apparatus so at the end of the day we were exhausted.”
Fire Chief Carl Hickman said the firefighters were hired using SAFER grant money. SAFER stands for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response and is offered to communities through the federal government. Hickman said the $310,500 grant will be used to pay the firefighters’ salaries over the next five years with a percentage picked up by the city as well. This year the grant pays 100 percent of the salaries and by year four the city will be responsible for half.
“These guys were hired through a new hiring process we use in conjunction with EOC Tech. There is a consortium of 18 or 19 fire departments that use this system,” Hickman said.
With the new system, firefighters list the departments they would like to work for then departments choose from a list of candidates.
“Two are out of the new firefighter academy there (EOC). They had four months of basic training and that saves us money," said Hickman.
Grant money allows department to add 3 firefighters to payroll
Stacy Barnes
Three new firefighters are living out their dreams right here in Mustang. Eric Halter, Chris Edwards and Clayton Hart all say they grew up wanting to wear the fireman’s hat. Both Halter and Edwards recently completed training at Eastern Oklahoma County Technology Center in Choctaw, while Hart finished his associate’s degree in Municipal Fire Protection from OSU OKC. All three men say they are happy to be part of the community and it is especially rewarding for Halter who left his job to pursue his dream.
“I quit my job and cashed out my 401K to put everything on the line,” he said. “I kind of hesitated because I had a decent paying job and a family to support.”
But, the 2000 Mustang High School graduate says his risk paid off and now he’s able to raise his son in his hometown while serving the community he loves.
Both Edwards and Hart hale from just up the road in Moore and say they selected Mustang as one of the departments they wanted to work for. After just a few weeks on the job the men say they are continuing to learn Mustang FD operations, but things are a bit better than before.
“At the academy we were 8 to 5 in bunker gear,” said Edwards. “We never came out and we were on breathing apparatus so at the end of the day we were exhausted.”
Fire Chief Carl Hickman said the firefighters were hired using SAFER grant money. SAFER stands for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response and is offered to communities through the federal government. Hickman said the $310,500 grant will be used to pay the firefighters’ salaries over the next five years with a percentage picked up by the city as well. This year the grant pays 100 percent of the salaries and by year four the city will be responsible for half.
“These guys were hired through a new hiring process we use in conjunction with EOC Tech. There is a consortium of 18 or 19 fire departments that use this system,” Hickman said.
With the new system, firefighters list the departments they would like to work for then departments choose from a list of candidates.
“Two are out of the new firefighter academy there (EOC). They had four months of basic training and that saves us money," said Hickman.
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