IN MEMORY OF LENNY RETSKE
 Lenny passed away Thursday, December 4, 2003. He was born in Puerto Rico on June 17, 1971. On September 16, 2000 Lenny married Lori Patrick in Culver.
 Lenny was a paramedic and a volunteer fireman with the City of Plymouth. He spent six years in the Indiana National Guard. He is survived by his wife, two sons, Luke and Logan, at home, a brother, Allen Retske of Lake Village, Indiana, a half-sister, Amanda Retske of Florida, a half-brother, David Retske, who is in the service in Korea, his father, Gene Retske of Florida and his mother, Karen Spencer of Dayton, Ohio.
June 17, 1971 - December 4, 2003 |
IN MEMORY OF OUR CHIEF
Chief John Brown passed away Monday, September 1, 2003, after a short battle with cancer. Chief Brown joined the Plymouth Volunteer Fire Department in 1968 and was hired as a full-time firefighter with the Plymouth Fire Department in 1975. In January 2000 John became the Chief of the Plymouth Fire Department and served as our Chief until his death on Monday.
Chief Brown was laid to rest in Oakhill Cemetery, Plymouth, IN, following the service at St. Michael's Church.
April 20, 1942 - September 1, 2003
November 20, 2003
A Memorial Tribute to John T. Brown
by Mr. & Mrs. Larry Starr
John Brown, a local business owner with some spare time on his hands, wanted to devote that time to a good cause. After thinking it over and talking to his wife Marianne, John decided he wanted to help his community by becoming a volunteer fireman. John joined the Plymouth Fire Department on December 1, 1968. Once on the fire department, John Brown spent the rest of his life devoted to saving lives, structures, and helping the fire department become one of the best in the state. John passed away on September 1, 2003 after a courageous battle against cancer. He left behind a legacy of commitment to a cause that will be hard to beat by any fireman to come in the future.
Being a fireman is much more than getting to the firehouse when the signal goes off, slipping into fire fighting gear, and riding the truck to the scene of the fire. John knew that so he attended many schools to enhance his knowledge of fires and fire codes. The National Fire Academy for Fire Prevention in Emmitsburg, Maryland is one of the nationally recognized training institutes that comes to mind that John attended. There were other schools also, but no matter where John attended classes he brought back the knowledge he gained to his colleagues to be shared by everyone. Some of John’s fellow firefighters said John was most proud to attend the Duneland School of Fire and Emergency Services. At the Duneland School, John sat on the board and served as safety officer. The students that John taught in Marshall County were later to return to the Duneland School and become instructors themselves.
John didn’t stop with just becoming textbook enlightened either. He, along with Wayne Smith and other chiefs in the county, set up Marshall County Fire Schools to educate and train new fire fighters. John took great pride in these schools and was even elected as the first “training officer” of the Marshall County Fireman’s Association in 1986. These schools continue today to enrich the lives of all of the men and women who fight fires in Marshall County.
Over the years, John Brown received many awards and was a member of many organizations. Some of his awards included the “Indiana Volunteer Fireman’s Association (Midwest) Award." Another that comes to mind is the “Area 219 Instructor of the Year Award.” As to the organizations he belonged to, they included the following:
Member of Indiana Volunteer Fireman’s Association since 1968
Member of the Indiana Fire Chiefs Association
Indiana Fire Inspection Association
Indiana Fire Prevention Task Force
Board of Firefighting Personal Standards and Education
International Fire Service Accreditation Congress as an instructor III
In 1983 and 1984, John attended the Fire Prevention Specialist I and II classes at the National Fire Academy. When he returned to Plymouth, He and Wayne Smith worked together to set up an inspection program for our community. About this time an ordinance was passed by the Plymouth City Council to have smoke detectors placed in rental properties. John was put in charge of getting the new ordinance in place and up and running. To this day, the plan remains intact.
One of John Brown’s most memorable achievements came when he was appointed Fire Chief of the Plymouth Fire Department and Director of the E.M.S. on January 1, 2000. After many years of hard work and dedication, John Brown had reached the top of the ladder in his profession. There are few men and women that will follow in John Brown’s footsteps and achieve what he achieved, but there are many young men and women that have John Brown’s guiding light to lead them to the top of the ladder where John was able to go. May that light shine for each and every new Plymouth firefighter. |
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