Feb 18, 2022 4 min read

For almost five decades Scott Reese has worked in fire services, and after 24 years as the chief of South Strabane Township’s fire department, he is ready to call it quits.

Reese, 62, will retire from his current role April 4, a date he says he is looking forward to. Reese began with the South Strabane department in 1989.

However, his career as a firefighter started in 1976, when he joined the Lone Pine Fire Department in Amwell Township, where he grew up.

“Just being a firefighter alone is rewarding because you’re going out and you’re helping somebody out,” Reese said. “Where I started it was a small community, so most of the time you knew the people that you were going out and helping.”

Bob Weber, chairman of the South Strabane board of supervisors, had only praise for the job Reese has done as fire chief.

“Scott and I have worked together since 2016. He was a conscientious and reliable fire chief for South Strabane. He carried out his administrative duties in a professional manner,” Weber said in a phone interview Wednesday. “Most importantly, his performance as an emergency scene commander was excellent … A learned colleague and friend, he will be missed.”

When Reese started at South Strabane, both the community and the department itself looked much different.

Reese recalls that that they were responding to 75 to 100 calls per year.

In 2021, they responded to 702 calls.

That sharp increase is an indicator of the commercial and residential growth in South Strabane.

“When I first became chief in 1998, Trinity Point wasn’t there, Strabane Square wasn’t there, Tanger Outlets wasn’t there, Old Mill Shops wasn’t there, Meadows Landing wasn’t there. All that development, just on the commercial side … those things make an impact on your community,” Reese said.

The fire department itself was actually made up of two departments. Station 37 was chartered in 1956 and Station 44 was chartered four years later, according to Reese. Merging the two was one of Reese’s first tasks as chief.

“They were going to do the same job but marching on a different beat,” Reese said. “Not always bread and butter. There was a lot of challenges and issues that had to be worked out.”

The departments merged in 2005 and became Stations 44-1 and 44-2.

“That was a single charter, single meeting, single bank account and single relief association. Prior to that, it was all different,” Reese said.

Station 44-1 is located at 1696 East Maiden St., and Station 44-2 is at 172 Oak Springs Road.

Since then, the department has become a combination service with both paid firefighters and volunteers.

As Reese prepares to leave, he hopes that his successor will continue to adapt to changes in the community to provide reliable service. Reese also feels that one of the most important roles the fire department can play is teaching fire prevention.

“A lot of people don’t understand (fire prevention) is the No. 1 goal of a fire service,” Reese said. “You do that through local programs with your grade school.”

He pointed to the more than 400 students at Trinity East Elementary School.

“What a great time to be able to go into a young child’s life and to able to start teaching them about fire prevention and fire safety,” Reese said.

These efforts have reverberating effects, according to Reese, as children often go home and have conversations with their families about their own fire prevention plans.

“I hope that’s one thing that continues to happen in the generations coming forth,” Reese said.

As far as who will replace Reese, township Manager Brandon Stanick said the board of supervisors plan to make a hire in March.

Stanick said the township has received 16 applications for the job. Those applicants are being considered by a committee that includes Stanick, Weber, Supervisor Russell Grego, North Strabane Fire Chief Mark Grimm, Washington County Director of Public Safety Jerry Coleman, fire department President Cory Gaiser, a career firefighter and two volunteer firefighters.

As for Reese’s post-retirement plans, he said he has not given it much thought, but said he hopes to find new interests that do not carry the stress of running a fire department.

“I know I don’t want to just sit at home and twiddle my thumbs,” Reese said.