Ypsilanti City Council honors retired Fire Chief Jon Ichesco
Recently retired Ypsilanti Fire Chief Jon Ichesco was honored by city council Tuesday for his 28 years of service within the department.
Courtesy Jon Ichesco
Courtesy Kate de Fuccio
Ichesco, 66, began working for the city in June 1984 as a firefighter and was promoted within the department. In 1994, he became the fire marshal and the fire chief Jan. 13, 2007.
In recent years, Ichesco served as both fire marshal and fire chief. Ichesco retired Dec. 31 and Captain Max Anthouard was named interim chief Dec. 20.
Council presented Ichesco with a certificate and resolution commending him for his "unparalleled service" to the citizens of Ypsilanti.
"It’s been a pleasure and an honor to serve and I won’t be going too far away," Ichesco said. "It was fun serving people and that was my reward."
A roast will be held for Ichesco from 2 to 5 p.m., Jan. 20 at the Michigan Firehouse Museum located at 110 W. Cross St.
Katrease Stafford covers Ypsilanti for AnnArbor.com.Reach her at katreasestafford@annarbor.com or 734-623-2548 and follow her on twitter.
Comments
JRA
Thu, Jan 10, 2013 : 2:34 p.m.
Thank you Chief, for your many years of service! You are a fantastic human, and excellent leader! Enjoy your retirement!
Ron
Wed, Jan 9, 2013 : 7:22 p.m.
The citizens of Ypsilanti will surely miss you Chief. I salute you for your service and trying to run a Department with very little resources or manpower which you had no control over. I live on Washtenaw and I see and hear the trucks going by all the time and then I hope they have a safe return. The new chief will have some big shoes to fill when they find a replacement. Hopefully they will promote within, as in giving the position to the interim chief since he is already doing the job that the council felt he could handle by appointing him. Then get us another 2 firefighters back on the job and let city council start taking cuts out of their paychecks and budgets. It's time for the tax payers to start demanding more protection from both the Fire and Police. Bring our men and women back so the city can control all the crime going on and make us feel safer with more man power on both departments. Hey maybe city council could get laid off for a few months and let them see how it feels to not have a job. Don't forget Mr Mayor and Council Members, the citizens voted you in, just takes a petition drive to have you recalled. Find the money and staff the departments in a safer level, even if you all have to cut your paychecks in half.
YpsiVeteran
Wed, Jan 9, 2013 : 9:09 p.m.
I echo your support for restored police and fire staffing, but councilmembers only make somewhere between $5,000 and $7,000 a year as it is. I suppose you could make the council positions volunteer, but what quality of people would end up with? There is no more fat to cut in the Ypsi City budget, and there hasn't been for a long time. Revenue needs to be increased at this point.
ypsi 1
Wed, Jan 9, 2013 : 5:03 p.m.
Jon Ichesco deserves many thanks for years of outstanding commitment.