LOVE THROUGH THE DECADES The Ingrams have been married for 52 years
$100,000 GRANT
OUTLAWS KEEP ON WINNING
Search and Rescue to purchase new equipment
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It’s now eight in a row for hockey squad
2012
CCNA
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Friday, January 29, 2016
SERVING MISSION SINCE 1908
Mission fire chief Larry Watkinson is moving his family back to the Okanagan. After almost eight years with the Mission Fire Rescue Service, Watkinson is taking the top position with the Penticton Fire Department. KEVIN MILLS PHOTO
Farewell to the chief Larry Watkinson has decided to take a new role as head of the Penticton Fire Department Kevin Mills Mission Record
After almost eight years with the Mission Fire Rescue Service, Larry Watkinson is going home. The fire chief has decided to return to the Okanagan to become the new chief of the Penticton Fire Department. “It’s been a great time. Coming in as assistant chief here was a good move for
me and it was a position I was really looking forward to because it was in training and in fire prevention and operations which was my passion,” he said. Originally from Kelowna, Watkinson came to the Lower Mainland to work with the Justice Institute, overseeing all firefighter training. But he missed the atmosphere of being in the firehall and responding to emergencies. When he saw the Mission job posting
for an assistant chief, he decided to go for it. Once accepted, he worked with chief Ian Fitzpatrick for five years, until Fitzpatrick retired. The search was on for a new chief in Mission but Watkinson didn’t apply. “I was still happy in my role.” But Mission’s city manager and mayor contacted him and asked if he wanted to be appointed as chief.
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“I said, with the right tools in place, yeah.” As assistant chief, Watkinson had witnessed some difficult times at the Mission station. “The financials were pretty tight.” When he took the job, the district didn’t fill the assistant chief position. “I was by myself. It was hard. There were a lot of challenges.” Continued on A3
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