Future generations of Whitecourt Firefighters will now be conducting their training under the name of a former Whitecourt fire chief.
At the regular meeting of council on Monday, Sept. 9, Council approved a motion to re-name the Fire Training Grounds at the Town Shop to the “Bruce Parent Training Grounds” in memory of former Whitecourt Fire Chief Bruce Parent, who was a leader in bringing new standards of firefighting to Whitecourt and Alberta.
Whitecourt Fire Chief Brian Wynn says the now standardized NFPA 1001, which identifies the minimum job performance requirements for career and volunteer firefighters whose duties are primarily structural in nature, was initially introduced by Parent.
“We would like to recognize Bruce Parent, our former fire chief who was huge in bringing the 10-01 program to Whitecourt.” says Wynn. “Whitecourt was one of the first communities to do 10-01 in house, Bruce was a big part of driving that and the department.”
Following his passing in 2023, Wynn says this is the best way for the Fire Department to honor Parent’s legacy.
“It’s too bad we had to wait for his passing but we would like to recognize his effort to not only Whitecourt but the province for leading this program and name our training grounds after him.”
The motion to rename the Training Grounds passed unanimously.
