The Crawfordsville Fire Department is two members stronger today.
Swearing in the department’s newest members of its growing crew Wednesday at City Hall following a Board of Works & Public Safety meeting were Chief Scott Busenbark and Crawfordsville Clerk-treasurer Terri Gadd.
Busenbark said initiates Grant Kennedy and Chris Thibaut come to the department as valuable, certified members of the firefighting scene, each gaining experience at their respective fire departments in the region.
“They come to us with some pretty good qualifications,” Busenbark said. “We’re really excited to have them.”
Thibaut, an Illinois native, comes to Crawfordsville from Lafayette where he worked for an ambulance service. He said he’d put in his application and “see what happens” while looking for a better setting to exercise the training he has received.
“I come from a small town in Illinois, so we didn’t get to use a lot of our skills,” Thibaut said. “I’d like to eventually use the skills I learned from my academy and college experience, to provide the best care I can.”
A native Hoosier, Kennedy also comes to CFD from Lafayette. He received a tip that CFD — where his uncle Dana Sowders provided protection for many years — was looking for qualified candidates. He was sworn in Wednesday in front of a host of family and friends.
“I had an uncle who worked here previously as a paramedic. He and his wife were telling me about it. I heard they need some guys, so I put in an application and went through the process,” Kennedy said. “I come from a part-time department in Indianapolis that’s rural just like Crawfordsville, and I come also from Eli Lilly Fire Department. They provide rope rescue, confined space and hazmat. I feel like I can help provide the community with that, and pursue my paramedic [certification], and help protect the city.”
