East Fork battalion chiefs present a flag signed by firefighters to Chief Tod Carlini on his retirement Friday.
Douglas County Dispatch toned Chief Tod Carlini into retirement after a tearful ceremony at East Fork Station 14 on Friday morning.
Carlini made his final broadcast before giving up the position he’s held for a quarter century.
“Douglas this is Chief 101, this will be my last transmission as chief of the East Fork Fire Protection District,” he said on the radio. “I want to thank all of the staff and volunteers past and present, who have supported me through my career. I also want to thank the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Douglas County Communications Center and all the others who support public safety in this beautiful county. I also want to thank all of our regional partners.
“Thank you one and all,” he said. Always take care of one another and be safe. God Speed. Chief 101 signing off.”
Firefighters, friends and colleagues filled the station to bid farewell to Carlini.
“I’m speechless,” he said. “I’m looking out over a sea of people. You’re the ones who made it all happen. You propped me up when I needed to be propped up. You told me I was wrong when I needed to be told I was wrong. And we celebrated all the times we got it right. Seeing all the people here today, I know we got it right a lot of times.”
On Thursday, Douglas County commissioners issued a proclamation recognizing Carlini’s service as Emergency Manager as well as his half-century in the fire services, first in Lyon County where he grew up and then in Douglas County.
Sheriff Dan Coverley said he’s known Carlini over the course of his entire career in Douglas County.
“Seeing him at a scene or at a meeting was always very reassuring to me,” Coverley said. “His support and East Fork’s support of the Sheriff’s Office was tremendous, and I think our relationship is awesome. That is a lot to do with his leadership.”
Coverley said Carlini’s caring nature was evident when deputies were injured in the line of duty.
“Since I’ve been Sheriff, I’ve had several deputies who have been wounded in the line of duty,” Coverley said. “And every time one of those incidents happened, Tod would call me and ask how they were doing and if there was anything he could do to help them. And that meant a ton to me, and it meant a ton to my guys to know that support from you and your department goes without saying.”