I was saddened to receive the email informing me that Dickie Gibson had passed away. It’s a loss! For those who knew Dickie, you know he was never going to win an award for being politically correct. Its okay, Dickie didn’t care. What Dickie cared about was his family and the community. He showed his commitment to the community by being a member of the Adelphia Fire Company. He served as Fire Chief and held a number of other positions over the years. I will remember Dickie in a number of ways. The first was his vision for the fire protection needs of the community. Dickie realized that the area served by the Adelphia Fire Company was changing; he saw the growth of homes and the unfortunate loss of farm lands. With the growth Dickie knew there would be increased and new service demands from the fire company. Dickie was the first to propose a satellite fire station on Route 33. This was done as a pilot program when the John Bean was stored in Leroy Malsbury’s garage on Route 33 in Jerseyville. About 20 years later a dedicated fire station was built adjacent to this location that now house two fire trucks, meeting rooms, and will serve the community well for decades to come. Dickie also saw the work of the Fire Chief increase. As a result many of his evenings were spent attending meetings both in town and across the region. Dickie was the first Fire Chief to convince the Board of Fire Commissioners that a dedicated Chief’s vehicle was warranted. In the past chiefs would receive a stipend for using the personal vehicle. As a result of Dickie’s work with the Commissioners, a brand new Dodge Diplomat was purchased and equipped for emergency response. Dickie also worked to place a cascade system on the Pirsch aerial ladder truck (19-2-90) which would enable firefighters to refill air cylinders on the scene of large incidents. He also saw the need for a dedicated rescue vehicle. He worked again with the Commissioners to purchase a used ambulance which would serve as the first rescue truck (19-2-85) for the Adelphia Fire Company. Eventually the need for such a dedicated vehicle was realized and the Fire Commissioners purchased a Saulsbury rescue truck on a Mack chassis. Dickie was also one of the founding members of the Western Monmouth Mutual Aid Association that was created so the fire companies and first aid squads had a monthly meeting to discuss operational issues in the region as well, and perhaps more important, for folks to get to know each other before doing so at a large-scale incident. Not only was Dickie engaged in what the fire company would need to serve the community, he also showed his mechanical talents with this hands. The result of this was the construction of a brush fire truck, loving called the Iron Termite (19-2-93). The Iron Termite was built on a 1942 Dodge Power Wagon and came to life at the Stavola plant in Millstone where on weekend Dickie led work parties that would transform a rusty old Power Wagon into a terrifying looking brush truck that could withstand almost anything. The truck was stripped down to the chassis and rebuilt from the ground up. This brush truck would serve the District well for many years and proved it value every brush/forest fire season. Another project Dickie led was the rebuild of the John Bean High Pressure truck (19-2-94). Over the years, use as brush truck (before the Iron Termite) had shown the impact of many years of hard use. Dickie gathered the work group, the necessary supplies, and especially the TLC that was needed to rebuild this fire truck to its original grandeur. In the end a great looking fire truck that was once again a proud member of the Adelphia Fire Company. I think the thing I always appreciated about Dickie, in addition to his mechanic skills, was his ability to mold people. In many ways, Dickie was like you step-father and in fact many people nicknamed him Dad. Dickie expected every person to carry his or her weight. He never cut anyone any slack, but he also did not ask anyone to do what he would not do himself. He worked hard every day – and he expected others to do so as well. If you didn’t, he never hid the fact that you were letting down the team and that you needed to pick up the pace. Hand in hand with this, Dickie never let a mistake made by an individual go unnoticed – in fact Dickie maintained a mental archive of these types of events and eventually would come up with nicknames for folks as result of these events. Dickie also knew turnaround was fair place and enjoyed being ridiculed when he was the one that did something that was less than stellar. When he had enough his means of retreat was usually leaving the fire station. Dickie, we will miss you! You left your mark and now its time to look back and enjoy what you have created. We know you will keep an eye on your family and the fire company. I am sure that you will also find away to make fun of us when we make a mistake from a far. Rest in peace my friend! Eriks Gabliks
