By Adam Smith

The North Jefferson News



A long-time Fultondale firefighter was recognized this week for more than 30 years of service to the city.

Fire chief Larry Holcomb named volunteer firefighter and part-time fire marshal Scott Fassina the city’s Firefighter of the Year. He was also presented a 30-year service award from the Congressional Fire Services Institute, signed by U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus.

The recognition kicked off the fire department’s annual Christmas party, held at the fire station on Walker Chapel Road Tuesday night.

Holcomb said Fassina’s contributions, spanning four decades, are largely responsible for how far the department has come since the the late 1970s.

“He’s been a medic for years and he’s responsible for our drug licenses and a lot of our protocols,” Holcomb said. “He’s been through I don’t know many chiefs, but he’s been able to succeed with all of them and keep on going.”

Fassina said he was flattered by the recognition, but he has no plans to stop affiliation with the fire department any time soon.

“There’s always something different about every call,” he said. “I’ve worked all ends of it, from firefighter and medic to the fire marshal side. No two calls are exactly the same.”

Fassina said he became a volunteer firefighter and medic in 1981. Prior to that, the city’s medical response team was part of the police department. Fassina began volunteering there in 1978.

When not inspecting new businesses or investigating fires as a fire marshal, Fassina is employed full-time by the Trauma Communications Center, a branch of the Birmingham Regional Emergency Medical Services.

Fassina said Fultondale’s public safety departments have grown and improved immensely since he first began volunteering. He said a large part of that is owed to firefighters who want to further their education with medical and firefighting courses.

“It’s encouraging to see the young people on the roster who are begging for classes,” he said. “The training was not that great when I first got on, but it’s exploded over the last year and a half.”

Firefighter Josh Bryant said Fassina’s service sets an example to the other volunteers at the station. He said he was glad the department had the chance to honor one of its veterans.

“It was great to hand him that recognition because he’s been around so long, sometimes he gets taken for granted,” Bryant said. “We’ve got a real young department and it helps us realize how long he’s been with the department and the city. It [the award] was something small for that kind of commitment.”