Danbury Exchange Club Names Firefighter Of The Year

DANBURY, CT - From the Danbury Fire Department: On October 5th 2017, Firefighter Michael Vitolo was recognized by the Danbury Exchange Club for Firefighter of the Year 2017 at Anthony’s Lake Club here in Danbury. His name being added to the list of 19 others who have been honored with this award in past years.

Mike is a 10 year veteran of the Danbury Fire Department graduating the Connecticut Fire Academy in 2007.
He began his career in the fire service as a volunteer in the Hawthorne Volunteer Fire Department (NY) where he served for 7 years. Mike is a graduate from Pace University with a degree in Accounting and a minor in Photography. He is also currently enrolled in the Fire Science Program at the Naugatuck Valley Community
College.

Mike was nominated for this award because sometimes the people who do their best to stay out of the spotlight deserve to be put into by being recognized for their dedication, work ethic, knowledge and compassion. Mike is a firefighter that rarely needs supervision and can handle any issue thrown at him. He knows his job and performs it well. He takes that time to be an active listener and always does his best to show compassion to those he serves. Lieutenant Nicholas Cabral stated “Every fire house has formal leaders; every fire house also has informal leaders. The informal leader is the guy or girl that does their job, does it well and is respected by their co-workers. The informal leader never complains and silently leads peers in everyday actions. For “D” Shift in the Danbury Fire Department, one of our most revered informal leaders is Firefighter Mike Vitolo.”

At a recent incident, Mike’s skills were instrumental in the recent call of a patient falling off a roof and being
impaled by a large piece of steel. Mike’s skills on the saw, skills he says were instilled in him by his late
grandfather a New York City Firefighter, led to the safe removal of the patient and rapid transfer to the hospital. Another incident sited was the recent search for the lost mountain biker in Ferrington Park. Being an outdoorsman, Mike’s knowledge of trail systems and woodland navigation help lead the rescue crews to the patient. Mike is just as active off duty, assisting in any way he can around the fire house or simply lending a hand to one of his co-workers. He recently took an active role in the remodel of the fire station kitchen at
Engine 26 and teaches an annual fire safety class to autistic children in a Bronx school where his wife Kerri
works as a teacher.

Image via Danbury Fire Department