HERALD DEMOCRAT

DENISON -- "I don't have any regrets. I'd start over and do it again."

That's what Pottsboro native Ronnie Hughes says of his retirement after 37 years with the Denison Fire Department.

Hughes was treated to a farewell barbecue lunch on Thursday at Denison's Central Fire Station. Though his official retirement day isn't until mid-December, Hughes says he saved his vacation this year so that he could go ahead and take it all at the end. The shift he worked Thursday was his last.

"I was working at Main Street Lumber with another fireman, and he talked me into coming up here (the Denison Fire Department)," Hughes remembers. "I was 25 years old."

Training was, for the most part, done on the job in those days. Hughes first worked on the fire truck, followed by the ambulance, earning his EMT certification. He later went back to driving the fire truck as an engineer, a position he has continued to hold.

"The biggest challenge (about driving a fire truck or ambulance) is knowing where you're going ... You learn as you go, and we have map books," said Hughes. "But when you've got two or three men on a truck, someone knows where it's (an address) at."

Hughes said he's seen lots of changes through the years, many of them good. He noted today's additional training requirements for persons coming into the department and expressed pride in the younger generation of firefighters, EMTs and paramedics.

"It's a darn good group of (young) men," says Hughes. "And we've got an excellent group of paramedics. You get two or three of them together and they don't mess up!"

As far as his own decision to make his career with the fire department, Hughes sayd, "I wouldn't change a bit ... there's a lot different than when I first came to work, but it's been a good job for me ... But I'll miss the men more than the job."

Hughes says he doesn't know what he'll be doing after retirement, but that he's not against working again if the right opportunity presents itself.

"I'm not looking for another job, but if one comes up, I just might take it," says Hughes.

Denison Fire Chief Gordon Weger and Assistant Chief Bill Ray both say Hughes will be sorely missed in several ways.

"Ronnie was a veteran when I came to work, and I've been working with him about 31 years," says Weger. "When you lose someone with that kind of experience, you can replace that position, but not that the person ... It will take 30 years to get that experience back the experience Ronnie has ... When Ronnie got to a fire, you didn't have to worry about the engine."

Weger says that, since October, Hughes is the third long-time fire department employee to retire. Between the three, the department has lost around 100 years of experience.

"Every 25 years or so, the department goes through this, losing the older guys, and it hurts,' continues Weger. "The older ones have to train the young ones ... Now the group (of fire department employees) in the middle have to step up and take the place of Ronnie."

Ray echoed Weger's sentiments and added, "Ronnie is a good guy. He gets along with everyone, is always ready to help everyone with anything they need. He is a very dedicated person."