Farewell to firefighters

Here and Now column by Dan Hilborn
Published Dec. 22, 2004


Recent changes to the pension plan for firefighters and other emergency service workers across B.C. are having a mighty impact at the Burnaby Fire Department, as six longtime city firefighters donned the red hat for the final time last month.

Deputy Fire Chief Doug Penn and Captain Jim Dixon are the two most high profile members of the Burnaby Fire Department's group of six retirees. The other recent departees are Asst. Chief Bill Mozel, Capt. Eion White, Capt. Gary Robinson and firefighter Robert Brandon.

Mozel was the most long-term of the retirees, having joined the department in 1968 when Burnaby still had horse stables on Canada Way and the idea of building Metrotown was just a gleam in the eye of a city planner.

Penn, the author of Follow That Fire: The History of the Burnaby Fire Department, was one of the Burnaby NOW's most reliable sources, and alerted the media to all kinds of stories.

One such incident that never made into print was the time a fire truck accidentally caught fire while parked in front of Burnaby city hall. Burnaby NOW's intrepid photographer Larry Wright arrived on the scene just five minutes after the call, but fortunately the firefighters were able to extinguish the flame before any embarrassing photos could be captured.

Like most of the retiring firefighters, Penn does not intend to sit back and let old age catch up with him.

Instead, he and his wife Doreen will be moving into their beautiful new waterfront property near Sechelt, where they plan to open the Absolute Heaven Bed and Breakfast in time for summer.

Penn waxed effusively about his B&B during a recent interview. Purchased just weeks before last Christmas, his personal piece of paradise features two separate suites and a fitness room, and will eventually boast an outdoor hot tub and a separate garage for his '57 Corvette. Check it out online at www.absoluteheavenbb.com.

Born and raised in Burnaby, Penn earned a BA in Education from Idaho State University and then joined the Burnaby Fire Department on Feb. 10, 1975.

He served as secretary of the union for four years, was promoted to lieutenant in 1997, to staff officer a year later and deputy fire chief just one year after that.

Penn had nothing but praise for the relationship between the fire department members, their union and city hall, and said much of the credit for that success belongs to current Fire Chief John Stewart.

RUNNING IN THE SUN

Salima Jiwan and Violet Holmes of Burnaby completed the Honolulu Marathon last week and they each raised more than $4,000 for education and research into arthritis as part of the Joints in Motion team.

Jiwan, a 33-year-old hotel concierge, ran on behalf of her mother, who has arthritis, while Holmes, 68, ran for her daughter, who suffers from severe rheumatoid arthritis.

"My participation in Joints in Motion has changed my whole outlook on life," Jiwan said in an Arthritis Society press release.

"My fitness level has improved and I'm more willing to set goals. I never thought that it was possible that I would do a marathon, but now that I've proven I can do it, I've got the confidence to pursue other dreams."

Those comments were echoed by Holmes, who is a four-time Joints in Motion veteran.

"Seeing my daughter in constant pain keeps me motivated to do this year after year," Holmes said.

"I've seen first hand how debilitating arthritis really is. It's time we found a cure and I'm going to do all I can to help make that possible."

More than 2,400 Joints in Motion team members across Canada have participated in the program, raising more than $13 million since it started in 2001. In B.C., Joints in Motion raises an average $500,000 annually.

In return for their contribution, the Arthritis Society provides participants with training, marathon entry, and round-trip transportation and accommodation to the marathon destinations.