From the Fire Chief's Desk

By Alan Hull, Fire Chief

August 15, 2007

The Fire District has taken steps to ensure what has happened won’t ever happen again. Small organizations such as ours do not have the personnel to enable us to double check each others work on a daily or even weekly basis. Even as the Fire Chief, often I am still in the field administering first aid as an Emergency Medical Technician, or driving an apparatus to an emergency. Monthly I would review the bills and accounts and present them to our Board for approval. We have discovered the reports we had been presented with were not a true representation of actual expenses, but rather a deceitful misrepresentation to cover a well planned embezzlement. We relied on an annual licensed government audit to ensure prior year’s funds had been appropriately distributed. We have always taken pride in our department and believed we were doing the very best possible to keep our expenditures to a minimum without sacrificing on service. Unfortunately, this was not the case, a trusted long term employee had broken the trust we had placed in her and our fire department has suffered a monetary loss as well as a loss of respect and trust. The fiscal responsibility of the Fire District is the Fire Chiefs’, I take this responsibility seriously, and I will never again delegate this responsibility to a sole individual. New procedures and policies have been initiated that either where not in place, or had not been fully implemented. We have removed Pam Rowley Butcher from all District vendor and bank accounts, placed her on unpaid leave and have discontinued medical, dental, and life insurances. All of our accounts have been or are in the process of reconciliation. Presently we are awaiting the acknowledgement from law enforcement that a forensic audit has been completed on all of our accounting books. This audit will determine the exact extent of criminal and or civil damages to be assessed.  We have retained an attorney to ensure legal procedures are followed and to represent our fire districts’ and thus our citizens’ rights. Of utmost concern to the Board of Directors and myself, is the pursuit of restitution to recover what has been taken from all of us. This theft was the action of one individual. The honesty and integrity of all others in our organization should not be tried by the clandestineness actions of one individual. Please, do not allow this isolated event erode the years of respect and honor our firefighters have cultivated in their many years of service to our community.

Alan L. Hull, Fire Chief

Estacada Rural Fire District # 69

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Past Chief's Desk Reports:

March 2006

September 2006

January 2007

April 2007