St. Charles Lieutenant Named Finalist for American Legion Firefighter of the Year Award

Lieutenant Tony Cavallo of the St. Charles Fire Department was recently named a finalist in the 2016 American Legion Firefighter of the Year Award.

Lt. Cavallo had to meet stringent eligibility guidelines and professional criteria to be considered for the award, which includes nominees from fire departments throughout Illinois, according to a city of St. Charles press release.

“We are pleased and proud that Lt. Cavallo received this distinguished recognition,” said St. Charles Fire Chief Joe Schelstreet. “Throughout his career, Lt. Cavallo has shown he is a well-rounded, caring professional who is dedicated to his community, his profession and his Fire Department.”

Lt. Cavallo has been recognized in the past for his competence, courage and compassion. His nomination highlights incidents such as rescuing a wheelchair-bound resident from a second floor apartment that was on fire by bringing him down a ladder to safety. It also notes a time he extinguished a large grill fire at the VFW after last year’s Memorial Day Parade and personally bought groceries to replace what was ruined in the fire so the veterans could enjoy their picnic, according to the news release.

“That’s the kind of behavior that got Tony noticed,” said John DePauw, Commander of the American Legion #342 in St. Charles. “It was not only his service record, but what he did when not on duty.”

Lt. Cavallo will be recognized for this honor at the Sept. 6 City Council Meeting at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers, 2 E. Main Street in St. Charles.