The adrenaline Woody Thomas first felt as a rookie firefighter 41 years ago hasn't diminished as he's made his way into his 60s.
When the alarm goes off, Thomas wants to be a part of the action. And so, when he officially retired as a battalion chief with the Gastonia Fire Department in June, he couldn't help but hang onto the memories he's built from a lifetime in the fire service.
"You'd hear the sirens and think, 'I could've been involved with that maybe,'" Thomas said.
But Thomas couldn't stay away long. Shortly after open-heart surgery in June pushed up his retirement, he found a new job.
Beginning Saturday, he'll be the new chief of Crowders Mountain Volunteer Fire and Rescue. And he has no plans of hanging up his gear permanently any time soon.
"As long as it's fun, as long as it's rewarding, as long as my health stays well," he said.
A childhood dream
Unlike many firefighters, Thomas didn't have a family connection to fighting fires.
Rather, his interest in public service came along by chance.
"I grew up in metropolitan Richmond, Virginia," he said. "And I grew up on a thoroughfare where fire trucks routinely traveled."
Watching those trucks stoked his desire to become a firefighter.
And after his family moved to Gastonia, he was determined to make it happen, albeit against his father's wishes.
Thomas's dad feared for his safety and hoped he'd pick a more conventional career. But in a moment of failure he realized the depths of his son's passion.
"I did not pass the physical agility test the first time I tried out," Thomas said. "He saw how it broke my heart and then he was behind me 100 percent."
Thomas passed the test the second time and hasn't looked back.
Keeping on going
Thomas didn't sign on with the Gastonia Fire Department as a means to spend a couple years until he found a different job.
He wanted to make a career out of it, and did everything in his power to make it happen.
While many leave the agency after accruing 30 years of service — enough time for full city retirement — he didn't see the milestone as a reason to step away.
"I loved the job," he said. "It's exciting. It's exhilarating, and there's no job in the world that gives you the combination of challenge and reward that the fire station does."
Thomas has worked his fair share of tough calls. The worst, he said, involved a 12-year-old girl who took her own life after being bullied.
He wrecked on his way to another call and ended up in the hospital with a cracked sternum.
But he's also been able to help people in their toughest times.
"It's difficult to see the emotion people suffer through when they lose their possessions," Thomas said. "The reward is they're safe, their family is safe and your guys that you've led have come away safe and performed very well."
A new challenge
Thomas will now be leading the department he's spent the last eight years working for part time.
He enjoys fishing for a hobby, but has always craved something to do in the 48 hours off he had after each 24-hour Gastonia Fire Department shift. For 29 years, that even meant working in the Sears auto department.
Thomas' job at Crowders Mountain will be part desk work and part working calls. He'll also help recruit volunteers. He will work 25-hour weeks and has no plans to step away soon.
Thomas says he's recovered fully from his surgery to repair an aneurysm in his aortic valve.
He has two children and two grandchildren with Linda, his wife of 40 years.
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