HAIL TO THE CHIEF
Joe Stockert honored for career as firefighting leader
LANSDALE » An everyday hero has earned thanks for doing his part to protect Lansdale for four decades.
Mayor Garry Herbert presented a proclamation recently to Joe Stockert, former Chief of the Fairmount Fire Company of Lansdale.
“Whereas, firefighter Joe Stockert joined Fairmount Fire Company as a junior member in 1983, and by demonstrating excellent firefighting skills and leadership abilities, Joe was promoted to the rank of fire chief in January 2011,” Herbert said.
“And: Whereas Chief Stockert’s enthusiasm for his chosen profession and expertise was quickly put to the test, when he led incident command at the Crossing at Standbridge Apartments where a fire broke out in a fifth-floor apartment,” during a fire call in March 2011.
“Along with his officers and firefighters, Joe was able to quickly extinguish the flames and safely evacuate residents from their apartments, through the smoke-filled hallways,” Herbert said.
As Herbert read the proclamation at council’s Feb. 16 meeting, Stockert stood nearby, receiving a standing ovation from council and the public after the final words of the mayoral proclamation.
“Chief Stockert served as a role model, for firefighters and officers alike, including rescuing a mother and baby through an upstairs window early in his tenure as assistant chief,” said Herbert.
“The borough of Lansdale has been fortunate to have such a dedicated firefighter, who has served and protected the citizens of our community for nearly four decades,” he said: “On behalf of Lansdale Borough I take this opportunity to commend the dedicated service provided to the borough, and extend best wishes to Chief Stockert, and thank him for a job extremely well done.”
Previous Deputy Chief Gavin Butler took over as fire chief at the start of the year, according to the fire company, and Stockert has said he plans to continue responding to calls as a member of the fire company.
After the presentation, councilman BJ Breish recalled his first days as a firefighter in the company, and the first time he met Stockert: “We met on the back of a firetruck, on the way to a working fire. And I remember the conversation: somehow, as a relatively new junior member, I ended up with his old fire helmet.”
“Somehow, he knew that it was his, and sure enough, when I took it off and looked inside, the name was his. He had asked if we could swap helmets,” because he recalled the helmet had helped him in earlier responses, Briesh recalled.
The two went through with the swap, and the rest is history: “It seemed to have given him some good luck over the years,” Breish said.
For more on the Fairmount Fire Company of Lansdale, visit www.FairmountFireCo.com or search for “Fairmount Fire Company — Lansdale, Pennsylvania” on Facebook.