Rochester Fire Chief T.J. DuBois settles into new role

Rochester's new fire chief, T.J. DuBois, has seen several generations come and go during his 23 years working for the Rochester Fire Department. DuBois served as assistant fire chief for two years prior to being sworn into his current position as fire chief two weeks ago. He hopes to grow the department as much as his predecessor, Tom Butler, the city's longest serving fire chief.

The fire department is currently made up of 10 full-time firefighters and 22 volunteers. It provides fire protection for roughly 110 square miles in Fulton County, including the city of Rochester, all of Rochester Township, the south half of Newcastle Township and the east half of Richland Township.

DuBois finds himself at the tail end of the previous generation. When he first joined the fire department two decades ago at the age of 21, he was the youngest firefighter at the time. As times change, the department currently has two 19 year olds, and many in their 20's, with most of the current members having just five years of experience or less. 

"We have a very young department," DuBois said, "In terms of service, I think the next guy behind us has maybe five and a half years now. That's a pretty big gap compared to us." 

DuBois said Mike Woods currently holds the most time serving at the department, with 24 years of service under his belt. DuBois said his main focus now is trying to catch all of the new guys up on training needed and getting the newest generation of firefighters ready to essentially take over in the future. 

From left, Assistant Fire Chief Jamie Gagnon is sworn in to his position by former Fire Chief Tom Butler

During the promotion ceremony on June 28, several other firefighters were sworn in, including the new assistant fire chief, Jamie Gagnon, pictured above. Before joining the fire department five years ago, Gagnon started his career in Akron, serving for eight years on the Henry Township Volunteer Fire Department. One of the new captains, Brandon Cody, who was unable to attend the promotion ceremony, has around 13 years as well under his belt, previous serving for the Mentone Fire Department before joining the Rochester team. 

Alec Descoteaux was also promoted to a captain, and will serve alongside Cody in that position.  

(Pictured above Rochester Fire Chief T.J. DuBois pins newly promoted captain Alec Descoteaux on June 28.)

Still looking for more volunteers to join the team, DuBois said the recruiting process hasn't been easy. With the department having about 10 open slots for volunteers that they need to fill, DuBois encourages anyone looking to help to stop by the fire station. With free training through the state at no cost to the volunteer, DuBois said starting out as a volunteer has led to the careers of most who serve at the fire station. 

Pictured from left, full-time firefighters Tanner Medina, Kaleb Shaffer, Antonio Schlosser and Brody Cooper, are sworn in during the promotion ceremony by former Fire Chief Tom Butler. Rochester Mayor Trent Odell watches on.