The City of Winder held the graduation of four new firefighters from the Winder Fire Academy on Monday, February 1. The recruits spent 12 weeks of intense training.
“We received 14 applications, and the four guys that we’ve offered the jobs to I am so excited about. They are good people, and my theory and my belief over the last few years is not just to hire people because of their certification; I want to hire good people that will serve the City for a long time,” said Fire Chief Matt Whiting during the graduation ceremony.
The four new hires are Drew Burnett, Jeff Brooks, Jaden Griffiths, and Christian Strickland. They successfully passed the National Professional Qualification Firefighter (NPQF) I exam and other requirements for HAZMAT certification. They joined the Winder Fire Department after graduating.
“Our rookie school equips them with over 400 hours of training; this is both classroom and hands-on training. All the skills they learn prepare them to take the NPQF and be ready to fight fire,” said Training Officer Lieutenant Casey Wright.
Wright expressed his appreciation for the team of firefighters who assisted in the comprehensive training schedule.
“We have guys who work here who are the best at what they do. We have guys who go outside of our department and offer training to other departments, so we have subject matter experts that absolutely have the ability to provide the best training possible,” he said.
Chief Whiting added, “I feel very confident that we have hired four exceptional young men that are going to serve this department and that are going to serve the citizens of Winder for a long time.”
