The Avon-Miami Masonic Lodge is having an Earth Day Rescue Event and Open House on April 22nd at their location on 11665 North Lebanon Rd. They will be hosting several other organizations from 10 AM until noon.
The Loveland-Symmes Fire Department will be there giving tours of a firetruck and ambulance, as well as teaching how to apply tourniquets & give AED Defibrillator demos.
Paws For Miles, a local animal rescue based out of Loveland, will also be there having a dog adoption event.
Avon-Miami Charities will be there having an electronics recycling event.
The theme is to not just help the planet on Earth Day but also help people and pets. Here is the link to the Facebook post about the event:
by Billy Goldfeder, Deputy Chief of Loveland-Symmes Fire Department
Fire Chief Otto J Huber (2020 file photo)
We are pleased to announce that Fire Chief Otto J. Huber of the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department has been appointed as a Commissioner on the Commission on Fire Accreditation International.
The Board of Directors of the Center for Public Safety Excellence, Inc. (CPSE) has confirmed his appointment as Commissioner on the Commission on Fire Accreditation (CFAI). He will represent accredited fire service agencies serving populations between 25,000 and 99,999. Chief Huber’s name was among several proposed to represent the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC). Chief Huber’s term of appointment is for three years beginning on July 1, 2022 and ending on June 30, 2025.
The Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) provides an assessment tool to determine when a fire department has achieved an appropriate level of professional performance and efficiency. The CFAI has been providing this service since 1988 when it was created by the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) and the International City/County Managers Association (ICMA). In 1996, the CFAI became a trust organization in cooperation with the IAFC and ICMA, and in 2001, the CFAI incorporated to create a unique standalone organization. The cooperation among all three organizations remains excellent.
The mission of the CFAI is to “assist the fire and emergency service agencies throughout the world in achieving excellence through self-assessment and accreditation in order to provide continuous quality improvement and the enhancement of service delivery to their communities.” The accreditation program provides an in-depth process of self-assessment for fire departments, granting accreditation to organizations that successfully complete the assessment process and an on-site evaluation by their peers.
Chief Otto J Huber has been with the Loveland-Symmes FD since 1976. He is a certified Ohio Fire Executive, Fire Command Officer as well as a cedentialed Chief Fire Officer. LSFD is an ISO Class 1, CPSE/CFAI fire accredited agency as well as an accredited EMS agency by the Commission on Ambulance Accreditation.
Symmes Township, Ohio – Last week, on Thursday, June 3rd at 7 PM, the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department along with the Symmes Township Trustees recognized six-year-old Township resident Holden Patrick Smith. Holden just graduated from kindergarten at the Loveland Primary School a few days ago.
Holden’s quick actions and awareness in June of 2020 when he was five-years-old led to saving the life of his much younger cousin Magnolia Jane Smith-Camp.
Young, Magnolia came within seconds of losing her life while swimming. “Thankfully, she has made a full recovery,” said Deputy Fire Chief Billy Goldfeder.
“As the water fun season is upon us, we are taking this opportunity to recognize Holden for his actions, but to also aggressively take advantage of this incident to remind our Loveland-Symmes community, along with the greater Cincinnati area of the critical importance of water safety awareness and kids,” said Goldfeder.
Here are two videos of the ceremony that took place at the Loveland-Symmes Fire Station 61. One is the full ceremony and brief interviews with Holden, his grandmother, and his teacher. Watch as Goldfeder explains what Holden did.
The second LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV video is much shorter, but it best explains the message Goldfeder wants to be embedded in parent’s and caregiver’s minds – how to protect children when they are around water. And, this is as you will see, a very important message for your child as well so that they will know what to do when someone is in trouble at the pool.
Goldfeder asks, “Who is your designated watcher?”
Goldfeder wants to know, “Who’s watching the kids?”
Symmes Township, Ohio – The Symmes Township Trustees (pictured above placing the new ISO classification placard on their 100’ Sutphen platform) announced to residents the improved ISO 1 classification for their community.
Symmes Township provides fire, rescue, and emergency medical services through a joint fire service agreement with the neighboring City of Loveland. The Loveland-Symmes Fire Department (LSFD) provides this service as a career fire and EMS department operating from four (4) stations strategically located throughout the township and the city.
Symmes Township Trustee President Ken Bryant (Provided Photo)
The LSFD is dual accredited nationally through the Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE) and the Commission on Ambulance Accreditation (CAAS).
Symmes Township Trustee President Ken Bryant stated, “We are incredibly proud of the LSFD for working so hard over many years to accomplish this goal. Our Loveland-Symmes firefighters and paramedics work tirelessly to save lives and property and to keep our residents, businesses, and visitors safe and are an integral part of our township.
Mrs. Jodi Leis said, “It is our firefighters’ proactive involvement in nearly every aspect of our community that helps make Symmes Township a great place to live, work and play.”
Symmes Township Trustee Jodi Leis (Provided Photo)
“This accomplishment was only possible because of the work of our dedicated staff, the support and guidance of our elected officials, and the continued support of our residents.” stated Fire Chief Otto J. Huber. “The mission of the LSFD is to provide the most technologically advanced fire and EMS with the highest trained professionals, and to deliver that service to our residents with loyalty and compassion. Our members live that mission every day” the Chief added.
Trustee Phil Beck said “As elected officials, we take the responsibility of providing emergency services to the residents as our highest priority. This improvement in our fire department’s rating brings added value to our residents which is the benchmark we try to achieve when making decisions on our residents’ safety and spending their tax dollars.”
ISO is an independent organization that evaluates fire protection efforts in communities across the country. The organization collects information on communities and analyzes the data using its Fire Suppression Rating Schedule.
This Fire Suppression Rating Schedule evaluates four primary categories of fire suppression – fire department, emergency communications, water supply, and community risk reduction. Fire services are ranked between 1 and 10.
The Class 1 ISO rating will rank the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department as one of only 383 Fire Departments in the U.S. that are ISO 1 classified. To ensure the best is serving their community, LSFD’s chief fire officers and captains also hold credentials in their capacities through the Commission on Professional Credentialing (CPSE), the Ohio Fire Chiefs Foundation Executive Leadership Program, the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program, as well as, related professional leadership training and fire command certification programs.
Township Administrator Kim Lapensee stated, “Building strong relationships with our neighbors along with our township’s strong efforts to manage with strategic planning while maintaining fiscal reasonability to the taxpayers shows how grassroots township government can and does work for the people.”
Loveland, Ohio – The Loveland-Symmes Fire Department started receiving their first vaccinations for the COVID 19 virus yesterday, Tuesday, December 29, from the Hamilton County Public Health Department. “We will be vaccinating additional personnel in the future,” said Deputy Chief Michael Books.
