PEORIA, Ill. – It’s not the first time in recent memory the Peoria Fire Department has hosted a pinning ceremony for promotions.
But, this one may stick for awhile.
Three Peoria Firefighters have formally moved up the ranks — Tony Cummings to Assistant Chief, Lore Baxter to Division Chief of Operations, and Ryan Calhoun as a Battalion Chief.
A pinning ceremony was held for the three Friday.
“Anybody who follows the Peoria Fire Department knows that we’ve been in a state of flux,” said Shawn Sollberger, Fire Chief. “We’ve been constantly evolving. We’ve had a lot of retirements, a lot of turnover. We’re hoping, with this, by the grace of God, that now we have some stability in our command staff.”
Sollberger says the recent retirement of former Assistant Chief Rick Morgan resulted in the recent changes, and they’re changes he didn’t take lightly.
“It’s difficult to lead when you have constant revolve,” said Sollberger. “We’re constantly briging people up front, and you’re constantly having to retrain people, and things of that nature. The people who came before me took that challenge on, and they were part of that constantly revolving door.”
So, Sollberger says, he believes he’s finally gotten to a level of stability in the department.
