Firefighters honored at banquet

Members of the Town of Little Elm gathered together Saturday to honor outstanding individuals from the Little Elm Fire Department, surrounding fire departments and those they've impacted at the seventh annual LEFD Awards Banquet.

The LEFD responded to 2,349 calls last year. Their busiest month was February, and their busiest days were Fridays. Little Elm firefighter Jeremy Fuller showed videos he had made about the fire department, calls they responded to and a tribute video from the community sharing the impact the department has made.

One couple in the video who expressed their thanks to the department attended the banquet as special guests. LEFD firefighters had saved the life of John O'Reilly's wife Martha last year after she had suffered a heart attack.

"If it wasn't for them, she wouldn't be here," John O'Reilly said.

Grapevine Fire Chief Steve Bass was the special guest speaker at the event. He commended the LEFD for their services to the town and the state.

"You're doing things that are remarkable for your size," Bass said.

He continued with reading passages from Paul's letter to the Roman church from the New Testament in the Bible, asking the firefighters to be mutually encouraged by each other. He told the firefighters that "We're firemen," which is a special relationship they share without even knowing each other. His remarks were received with a standing ovation.

"Of the Year" awards were presented by Fire Chief Joe Florentino to members of the LEFD who have stood out and served their brotherhood exceptionally. This year, members were nominated for the awards by shift members and a committee scored the nominations before picking the winners.

Rookie of the Year was given to Michael Kohlschmidt. Driver of the Year went to Phillip "Pip" Hartley. He was nominated for being involved with putting together training programs for Station #2 to convert it to a truck company.

Fuller was named Paramedic of the Year. He is the field training officer for new hires or paramedic students that come into the department. Officer of the Year was awarded to Lt. James Connor. Connor was mentioned in a citation at the event where he and a part of the crew helped with a water leak. The next day, they went back off-shift and secured the leak and did other work in addition to what they'd done previous day.

Firefighter of the Year award was given to John Piper for his involvement with the new Firefighter Explorers program. Partnering with EMS Division Chief Todd Jamison, he has been leading the new program. He also does the grant writing for the department, including fire safety grants for personnel and equipment, and is a part of the Pipes and Drums with the department.

"I say it's split 30 ways, especially with my A-Shift brothers," Piper said. "This goes 30 ways."

The following received helmets for being with the department for five years: Jon-Michael Garza; Sergio Reyes; Kevin Collins; Leonard Glover; Scott Lyons; Lt. Jason Small; and Jamison. Members who were unable to attend the event to receive their helmets were Trent Espinoza and David Alonzo.

Chief Ed Wellman also recognized other citations which singled out firefighters who showed exceptional response to certain fire calls throughout the year.

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