FIREHOUSE ROAD

Bill Lattimer, Firefighter
Westbrookville Fire Department
Years of service: 30  years

 

Bill Lattimer grew up near a firehouse. As a kid he’d hear the whistle and watch the engines speed by, sirens blaring and lights flashing, and dream that one day he’d be on a truck too.

He was 16 when he walked into that firehouse and joined up, fulfilling a dream that has lived up to his childhood  expectations.

“I love the people in our station,” Lattimer says, “ It’s like family.” 

As a teenager and a new recruit, he learned to look to the older members. He was eager to learn it all, and fast. Those with more experience counseled him to be patient.

“As I got older I understood that I didn’t have to learn it all in one day,” he says.

Now an experienced first responder, Lattimer will still be found chatting with firefighters decades older than he.

“The old timers, they have great stories to tell,” he says, “and they love to teach the younger firefighters.”