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Staff file photo by Skip Lawrence
Timmy Eckenrode, 10, is Little Chief at Vigilant Hose Co. 6 in Emmitsburg.
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Emmitsburg -- It takes years for a fire company member to achieve the rank of chief. Timmy Eckenrode achieved that goal recently, and he will be turning 11 this month. He was named the Vigilant Fire Company's Little Chief of Fire Prevention. "I was happy that I won," he said. A panel of fire and rescue officials judged the contestants on interviewing skills and the ability to answer questions on fire prevention. Eckenrode was one of three company volunteers to win a title. Judges named Elyssa Cool as Vigilant's Miss Fire Prevention while Angela Javor won the company's Junior Miss Fire Prevention. While the girls received crowns and sashes, Timmy got a firefighter bobble head as a trophy and a tie with "Little Chief" printed on it. The Emmitsburg Elementary School student likes his trophy, and said he entered the contest because he likes talking about safety. "Ever since I was 5 years old, I wanted to be a firefighter and a policeman," he said. "I moved to Emmitsburg and I live down the street from the fire hall now, and so--I kept running to watch the trucks go out when the fire siren" went off. The advisers for the company's youth group, Junior Explorer Post, took notice and asked him to join. "I was happy because now I get to come to the fire hall a lot to help with things, and I get to see the trucks and have fun," he said.-- The fifth-grader has been a member of the post since last year.
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