WA Chief on New Job amid COVID: Exactly Where I Want to Be

POMEROY, ID—The new Garfield County Fire District chief is embracing the small town he now calls home and settling into his role after moving here from Massachusetts in August.

James Cleveland, 48, said his first month in the idyllic community is kind of a blur because he and his family contracted the coronavirus somewhere along their way to Pomeroy from the other side of the country.

"The first month doesn't really count," Cleveland said. "It was more than quarantining. I was really sick, but we all pulled through, so that's good."

He and his wife, Mariann, have four kids, ranging in age from 16 to 25. The youngest one is still at home.

"We love it here," he said. "We're used to the small-town atmosphere, and this community has been amazing. We bought a house, sight unseen, on Arlington Street. The house is quirky, and so is my family, so it fits us well."

As fire chief, he now oversees a volunteer department that responds to about 300 calls a year, mostly medical. Trucks and ambulances are housed at the station on Main Street, along with the district office.

In the past year or so, a new building was added to the site, which allowed the district to move the ambulances from the Garfield County Hospital to the fire station. Having all of the emergency equipment at one location is a huge benefit, the chief said. In addition, the district is now able to staff the station seven days a week, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

"Our trucks and ambulances are in service and ready to go at all times," Cleveland said.

The tax-funded district has three elected commissioners, Terry John, Aaron Stallcop and Gary Bowles, who meet on a regular basis. In addition to Cleveland, two paid positions are on the roster, including DeeDee Weymouth, secretary and EMT, and firefighter Kyson Fruh, who will become a permanent hire in January.

"We have a good crew, we really do," Cleveland said. "I've really enjoyed working with them so far. We have about 30 volunteers right now, but we always need more. People get busy and people retire, so we're always needing folks to backfill and replace. Without our volunteers, this place doesn't happen."

The district was formed in 1972 and covers the city of Pomeroy. During the summer, brush trucks are parked in remote farming areas, but can now be housed indoors, thanks to the new building.

Along with the newer equipment, a couple of vintage trucks are parked in the bays. Both were built in 1948 by Gray Fire Apparatus in Lewiston.

"This is one of the coolest trucks I've ever seen," Cleveland said of the historic red truck often used in parades.

Overall, the district's fire equipment is aging, and the new challenge is getting capital replacements on track, he said. A new ambulance will be arriving early next year.

"Everything works, and fires go out, but at some point, we're going to break something," Cleveland said.

The new fire chief grew up in California and moved to Murray, Idaho, where he and his family lived for 10 years. The nearest school was in Wallace, a long bus ride away, so the children were homeschooled.

They moved to New Mexico when a firefighting job became available, although the desert wasn't their first choice.

"We knew it wasn't permanent, but I'm glad I took that job. I got a wide variety of experience, from oil field fires to wildfires. But my family all wanted to get back to the snow and trees. Then, we moved to a small town in Massachusetts for three years, but the East Coast lifestyle wasn't for me. I enjoyed the historical sites there, but it's very hectic, very different than the West, in general. It's go, go, go, all the time."

Cleveland said Garfield County is an eclectic mix of everywhere his family has ever lived, and the perfect spot to live and work. His goal is to spend the rest of his career at the helm of the Garfield County Fire District.

"It's exactly where we want to be."

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