The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Ohler named firefighters’ Legislator of the Year
Falls Village rep ‘grateful’ to work with first responders
HARTFORD — In September, state Rep. Brian Ohler, R-Falls Village, will receive the Connecticut State Firefighters Association’s Legislator of the Year award at the annual convention. The announcement was made by a news release from the association.
“I am very grateful and appreciative to be recognized as Legislator of the Year for the Connecticut State Firefighters Association for the second year in a row. The 2018 legislative session proved, yet again, to be an uphill battle for our firefighters,” said Ohler in the release. “It was an immense honor to work with my fellow colleagues on the Fire/EMS caucus and with the House Republican caucus leadership to ensure that our regional fire training schools and the Firefighters Cancer Fund were fully funded through the next fiscal year.
The Fire/EMS caucus was inactive at the
“The 2018 legislative session proved, yet again, to be an uphill battle for our firefighters.” State Rep. Brian Ohler
state Capitol, until Rep. Ohler took the opportunity to revitalize it, he said. The goal of the caucus is to raise awareness of the needs for the state’s emergency first responders in order to secure adequate resources for fire personnel and EMS to safely conduct their jobs.
The Connecticut State Firefighters Association’s Secretary, Gerald Schaffer, wrote a letter to Ohler explaining why he had been chosen to receive the award:
“In appreciation for all you have done for the Fire Service of Connecticut, especially your leadership serving as Co-Chairperson of the bipartisan Fire/EMS Caucus of Connecticut legislators. In your first year as Co-Chair, you helped to organize what became one of the largest caucuses of legislators in the Connecticut General Assembly.
“We are especially thankful for the success of the Fire/EMS Caucus’ efforts to restore state funding to our Regional Fire Schools. We sincerely appreciate your support.”
The Connecticut State Firefighters Association was established in 1883, to form a harmonious relationship among the state’s firefighters to create an environment that fosters safety and success in performing their duties. The organization has more than 20,000 members throughout the state. All firefighters in Connecticut are eligible to join.