Roy Church (left) alongside Rick Ruttan
Fire crews from across Whitewater Region township spent some time in Haley Station on Tuesday as they celebrated the life of a staple figure within the Fire Department.
Current Station Captain Rick Ruttan says his friend and former Captain Roy Church spent 40 years embracing the community and teaching the next generation of local firefighters right up to his sudden death last week.
Church’s presence in the community spanned a four-decade career that saw him overcome a number of health issues, including spinal surgery and a bad shoulder that would eventually cap his active duty with the township earlier this year.
Ruttan says his former boss and mentor remained well regarded within the community, remembered as a down-to-earth and sociable person whose commitment to helping others earned respect among his peers.
Losing Church has been a shock to many at the fire hall and in the community, as he had been in close contact with his former crewmates in the days leading up to his death, including a moment where he dropped by to help tidy up the station and its equipment after firefighters returned from a late call for service.
Ruttan believes that it was a sign Church truly missed the comradery of a tight-knit family he had come to enjoy during his time serving the township. Those close bonds are also something Ruttan says will be part of the ongoing legacy of training and teaching future firefighters in Church’s honour.
The Haley Station Firefighters Association plans to dedicate a special commemoration to Church, among other distinguished figures in the station’s history.
(written by Kasey Egan)