Rock Community Fire Protection District has a new command staff following a string of retirements and promotions.
The district recently held badge-pinning ceremonies to recognize the new command staff members, including Matthew Ham and Mike Shafferkoetter, who were promoted from captains to division chiefs; Greg Heimos, who was promoted from captain to battalion chief; and Jon Giesler, Doug Ott, Tyler McBroom, Al McClain and Patrick Smith, who were promoted from firefighters to captains.
Also pinned during the recent ceremonies, which were held on Sept. 8 and Nov. 10, were two firefighters, Jon Roth and Dusty Colyer; a public education specialist, Alyson Barton; and chaplain and firefighter Bo Caldwell.
Chief Kevin Wingbermuehle, who took over leadership of the district on an interim basis following Jeff Broombaugh’s retirement on July 1, said he is glad to have the new commanding officers in place.
“It gives the ability for jobs to be dispersed accordingly instead of one person doing multiple things in their position,” said Wingbermuehle, who was named chief in a 3-0 Rock Fire Board of Directors vote on Sept. 29.
Wingbermuehle, who had been the district’s assistant chief before being named interim chief and then chief, saw his pay increase from $120,000 to $124,893.60 after his last promotion.
Board President Ken Baker said Wingbermuehle was the right choice to take over for Broombaugh.
“He did an excellent job as acting chief,” Baker said. “He has the dedication we want. He wants to work hard and do the right thing. In about five months, he made a lot of progress with a lot of projects that were taking place in the fire district, and it seemed like a good fit to move him to chief.”
Chuck Hill, who has been a battalion chief for the past three and a half years, was made interim assistant chief by a unanimous board vote on Sept. 26. He is being paid $119,403.96 as the interim assistant chief after being paid $113,204.
“He did a great job with his crew and had the respect of his men,” Baker said of Hill. “After talking with (Wingbermuehle), it seemed they are the perfect fit to have the two of them together.”
Baker said the board will decide whether to name Hill assistant chief in the next few months.
Hill, 58, of Imperial has worked at Rock Fire for 36 years. He was a company officer from 1998 to 2019, when he was promoted to battalion chief.
Before joining Rock Fire, he had worked less than a year at Community Fire Protection District in Overland.
“I’m really humbled,” Hill said of being the interim assistant chief and being tasked with overseeing the day-to-day operations of the district. “It wasn’t that long ago, I thought I was going to retire as a captain. Chief Broombaugh encouraged me to continue to seek leadership positions at Rock. I eventually got the battalion chief job, and then in a short period of time to get the assistant chief job is something I never imagined. I am way above what I thought I would be in the fire service.”
Promotions
■ Ham, 39, of O’Fallon has been with Rock Fire since 2006. He began his fire service career in 2001 in Dupo, Ill., after receiving his fire training as part of the Air Force reserves, an associate degree in fire and paramedic science from Southwestern Illinois, a bachelor’s degree from Southern Illinois and a master’s degree in fire service administration from Columbia South.
He will be paid $102,710.40 as a division chief overseeing compliance after being paid $58,448 as captain.
“It is a great community and family at Rock Community,” Ham said. “Everything I have and my family has we owe to the citizens here.”
■ Shafferkoetter, 50, of Imperial joined Rock Fire in February 2006 and had been a captain since 2019. He was a volunteer with the Union Fire Department and worked at the Berkeley Fire Department for one year before coming to Rock Fire.
He will be paid $102,710.40 as a division chief overseeing training after being paid $58,448 as captain.
“I have had the goal of being a training officer for 28 years,” Shafferkoetter said. “To finally achieve that at a place like this is beyond words. I want to continue the foundation of training that Rock has already begun and continue moving forward with it.”
■ Heimos, 58, of St. Louis County has been with Rock Fire for the last 28 years. He was a volunteer for two years before being hired as a full-time employee in 1996.
He will be paid $91,448.76 as a battalion chief after being paid $83,644.60 as a captain.
“I just want to be part of this team,” Heimos said. “I can see this district being one of the top fire departments in the country. I just want to be part of that.”
The five firefighters promoted to captain will be paid $83,644.40 after earning salaries of $76,593.92 as firefighters.
■ Giesler, 36, of Imperial was a volunteer at Rock Fire for three years before being hired as a firefighter in 2008.
“It is an honor to be trusted in this position,” he said.
■ Ott, 45, of Imperial has been a firefighter with Rock Fire since 2002 after being a volunteer firefighter with the district starting in 1999.
“I hope to do my best and live up to everything that everybody else taught me,” said Ott, whose father, Paul, was a volunteer with Rock Fire and whose brother, Dan, is currently a firefighter with the district.
■ McBroom, 36, of Arnold was a volunteer for Rock Fire for three years before being hired as a firefighter in 2010.
“It is an honor, and I am proud to serve the Arnold area,” he said of being a captain.
■ McClain, 47, of Arnold has been a firefighter with the district since 1998 after serving as a volunteer for Rock Fire from 1992-1997.
“I want to keep leading my guys,” he said. “My old man (Glen) was a battalion chief here. My uncle (Wayne) was a longtime volunteer, and my grandpa (Paul) helped start the department.”
■ Smith, 42, of Union has been with Rock Fire for the last 14 years. He also has worked part time for the Union Ambulance District for 23 years and was a member of the Berkeley Fire Department for three years before joining Rock Fire.
“I am honored to be able to serve in this position, and I hope I can continue on like the great leaders we have had in this district,” he said.
New hires
Roth, Colyer and Barton joined Rock Fire this summer, with Roth and Barton changing career paths to fire service.
■ Roth, 32, of Affton taught at a St. Louis charter school during the 2014-2015 school year before switching over to construction management for six years.
“I wanted to (be a firefighter) when I was 19,” he said. “I was talked out of it in college, and through some changes with the company I was at, I felt like God reached out to me to come here.”
■ Colyer, 36, of Bridgeton has been in the fire service for 10 years. He worked at the Ozark Fire Protection District for the last seven years, and he worked at Logan-Rogersville Fire Protection District for three years.
“This is a great place to work,” he said. “There are a lot of guys who have been here for 20 and 30 years, and that says a lot about a fire district.”
■ Barton, 35, of St. Louis taught math and social studies to sixth- through eighth-grade students at Holy Child Catholic School in Arnold for 12 years before becoming a public education specialist at Rock Fire.
“I needed a change,” she said. “The family aspect of Rock Fire attracted me here. It truly is a community.”
Colyer and Roth are being paid $65,433 a year, and Barton’s salary is $60,000.
Wingbermuehle said the district will hire more firefighters soon. The district currently has 59 firefighters.
“We will look to hire four more firefighters early in 2023,” he said.
