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Colonie Fire Company 2005 Fireman of the Year |
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Colonie Fire Company 2005 Fireman of the Year |
Congratulations!
James "Skip" Egan
The year this recipient joined Colonie
Village Fire Company the following events were taking place in the world:
• The Ford Motor Company introduced the Edsel.
• The Soviet Union launched Sputnik.
• The owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers agreed to move the team to Los Angeles,
CA.
• The Wham-o Company produced the first Frisbee.
• The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss was first published.
• The Milwaukee Braves defeated the NY Yankees in the World Series
• American Bandstand premiered on television.
• The top grossing film of the year was “Jailhouse Rock” starring
Elvis Presley.
• Some of the top musical hits of the year were:
“Blueberry Hill” by Fats Domino
“That’ll Be the Day” by Buddy Holly
“Wake Up Little Susie” by the Everly Brothers
The year was 1957 and this member was 32 years old and a Coast Guard Veteran. He had been a life long resident of North Albany and bought his home in Colonie Village the year before joining the department. His interest in becoming a fireman stemmed from his father being an Albany City Fireman.
Although this member had a very busy life as a married man and father of seven
children he still had time to hold many offices within the fire department:
In 1960 he was elected Assistant Quarter Master
In 1961 he was elected 2nd Engine Lieutenant
In 1966 he was elected 1st Engine Lieutenant
In 1967 he was elected Engine Captain
In 1968 he was elected 1st Assistant Chief and later that year took over as
the Chief of the department
In 1971 and 1972 he was elected Director
And in 1991 – 1997 he was Fire Police Lieutenant
He has served on many committees over the years, including the Turkey Raffle, Kitchen restoration, Redi Room, Grievance Committee, Constitution and By-laws, Fire Advisory Board and the list continues. He is an outspoken member and has been known to disrupt the occasional company meeting in his earlier days for which he was fined. Even today, almost 50 years later, he rarely misses a meeting and continues to have his morning coffee at the firehouse with the “Old-Timer’s Coffee Club”.
Two years ago this member suffered a heart attack and gave us all a scare, but less then 6 months after his by-pass surgery he was back out on the road as a fire police.
Besides the firehouse he has also served as the American Legion Commander of the North Albany Post and two years ago as the Albany County Commander of the American Legion.
In 1982 he was added to the list of 25 Years Lifetime Active. In August of this year he will be starting his 50th year with the company as an active member. An accomplishment only reached by a few other members in the history of the department.
This firefighter was actually awarded this same honor 30 years ago this year.
Ladies and Gentlemen, it gives me great pleasure to announce the 2005 Firefighter
of the Year, Skip Egan.