| Boro fire chief to retire, new fire station opened |
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By: TMP - July 10, 2008
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Posted: Thursday, July 10, 2008 2:30 pm
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After a 31-year career that has spanned remarkable changes in the city and its fire department, Murfreesboro Fire Chief David Baxter has announced he will retire later this year.
Baxter announced his retirement at the same time ground was broken for Murfreesboro’s 10th fire station on Veterans Parkway Thursday.
Though no specific date was announced, Baxter said he is looking forward to retirement.
“I’m just going to enjoy it,” he said when asked about his future plans after his retirement date is official.
Murfreesboro City Manager Roger Haley told those who attended the event Deputy Fire Chief Cumbey Gaines would replace Baxter at the helm of the department and that the months ahead will provide opportunity for him to evaluate choices for his own deputy chief, among other decisions.
“I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Gaines said. “I appreciate the opportunity.”
Gaines is a 28-year veteran of the department, having risen through the ranks to his current position.
Rising through the ranks, Baxter was named chief in 1988, he said, there were only four fire stations in the city so breaking ground on the 10th shows the tremendous growth Murfreesboro and its fire department have experienced.
During his tenure, the department received Tennessee Municipal League’s Achievement Award for Excellence, the city’s Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating dropped from a 4 to a 2 and several innovative programs were started including the medical first responder and vehicle extrication program, Citizens Fire Academy, Youth Citizens Fire Academy and Project SAFE (Smoke Alarms For Everyone).
Baxter is past president of the Fire Inspector’s Association, the Tennessee Fire Chief’s Association and the Tennessee Firemen’s Association and is widely credited with improving the safety of firefighters across the state.
Gaines will assume the chief’s role later this year when Baxter officially retires.
Gaines has been married for 29 years to his wife Cynthia, a 31-year employee of State Farm Insurance Companies. The couple has two daughters, Kimberly, 28, and Lauren, 23. |
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