Concord's Most Senior Fire Officer Retires After 35 Years

Concord’s longest serving fire officer is retiring at the end of the month after serving the City for 35 years, according to Chief Dan Andrus.

Battalion Chief Guy Newbery was appointed to the Concord Fire Department on June 7, 1980, and has served the city as a firefighter, company inspector, fire lieutenant, fire captain, and, since 2003, battalion chief. He has also served on Massachusetts Task Force One, an Urban Search and Rescue Team of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and has had many deployments to disaster stricken areas of the country.

As a nationally recognized expert in the incident command system, he was invited earlier this year to observe the command operations at the devastating wildfires in California. Newbery has had many honors over his years of service, including being named Concord’s Fire Officer of the Year in 1992 and the Fire Officer of the Year for 2011 by the New Hampshire Fire Officers and Instructors Association. He is perhaps best known as a superior leader and mentor, someone who has a mastery of the technical side of fire, rescue, and emergency services, but also someone who is a principled person with the highest level of integrity. As well, he is known for his commitment to every member of the Department and he often bakes birthday cakes for the people who serve directly under him.

His last duty shift was on Thanksgiving Day, where he spent his last holiday “on the job” with his fire service family, as he has for so many holidays.

“ He will be deeply missed by the women and men who have served alongside him,” Andrus said in a statement.

Caption: One last meal with Guy Newbery, “the world’s best battalion chief,” according to a post on Facebook.