A Licking County fire captain was named Ohio’s fire officer of the year at an awards ceremony last week.
Monroe Township Fire Captain Josh Harrison was honored at the 2022 Ohio Fire Department Hall of Fame and Fire Awards Ceremony, held in Columbus on Wednesday .
“Like everything else in the fire service, nothing is accomplished by one person. It’s always a collective team effort,” Harrison said. “Quite honestly, in some ways I feel bad that I accepted it (the award) because there are so many good officers in this state that it fell on me, so I’m happy for it. accept on behalf of all the great officers we have in this state.”
According to Harrison, he first joined the fire service as a volunteer because he thought it looked fun.
“…Once I started volunteering, I realized it was fun – something I wanted to do as part of a lifelong career,” Harrison said.
Monroe Township Fire Captain Josh Martell, who nominated Harrison for the award, said there was no one more deserving.
According to the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office, the award recipient honors an Ohio fire officer who has “demonstrated outstanding leadership characteristics and, as a result of those attributes, has had a major impact on local and regional fire services”.
“He’s a very humble person,” Martell said. “When he found out he had received this award, he immediately tried to push it on others so that everyone felt like they had received the award (rather than receiving it themselves. “
Granville Township Fire Chief Casey Curtis said he has known Harrison for more than 20 years. He described him as a leader within his organization and in Licking County.
“He was one of the founding members of the First Responders Peer Support Group. Together, that group, along with some of Josh’s management, formed a non-profit group,” Curtis said, later explaining the impact of mental health awareness within the fire service. “For us, mental health awareness isn’t just the fire department and the errands and the EMS runs. We’re impacted by what everyone in this world is impacted by – maybe it’s family, maybe it’s monetary, maybe it’s just the stress outside of the fire department…”
Harrison’s wife, Meredith, said he was the same person at home with their family as he was at the fire station.
“He comes home at 8 a.m. from his 24 hour shift and just steps in and helps get our little one to school and does all the daddy things that a great dad would do,” he said. she declared.
Reflecting on what is rewarding about working in the fire service, Harrison said he loves seeing the change in people when it comes to leadership.
“I think we all come into the fire department to help the public,” he said. “But when we talk about leadership roles, I think it’s fun to see those you serve with rise through the ranks and for you to have a role to play. So I really enjoy helping others succeed.”
