The first initiative Josh Dixon took on after he was named chief of Henderson Fire Department was to ask his staff to create the department’s mission and values.
From that simple yet important exercise, many more positives have sprung at the department in the two years since he started as chief in the summer of 2023.
And those initiatives, their effect on the department and the recognition from other chiefs statewide that HFD’s ideas were working are all reasons Dixon on Wednesday was named the Kentucky Fire Chief of the year by the Kentucky Association of Fire Chiefs.
Dixon, though, in an interview with the Hendersonian a day later, said the award is more about HFD’s firefighters and their work than anything he’s done.
“(They) did all the work, not me,” he said. And another: “It’s their department. It’s not my department.”
One of the most important jobs of a fire chief, Dixon says, is to listen to his staff. He also said that’s another reason why the department has been able to build and improve—because he surrounded himself with talented people and listened to their innovative ideas.
After the department came up with its mission and values, there were several other initiatives that took shape, and all of them successful, said Dixon, an 18-year veteran of HFD. He calls it the “Road Map to Success.”
First, the department put in an official training program so that each maximizes their abilities. Next, the city commission approved Dixon’s request to create a deputy chief role. Having this position allowed Deputy Chief Chad Moore control of operations, allowing him to oversee the three different battalions which has made the department’s work at fire scenes more consistent across the department, he said.
The department has also implemented an annual physical agility test which must be completed by every firefighter all the way up to the chief, he said.
Dixon was worried that the physical agility test might face some backlash from firefighters, but he said he was pleasantly surprised when they showed up with their squads to take the test and both cheered each other one and competed against each other.
Firefighters were in full gear and completed firefighting skills such as hoisting hoses and raising ladders. Dixon said everyone in the department passed the test, and camaraderie within the department increased after it.
It also ensures that each firefighter is physically fit “any time we go on a run,” Dixon said.
Another piece of the department’s success is task books that were implemented for each employee. These task books include classes and certifications and other entries that are key to growth and learning, and Dixon said he sees it as a “Playbook for success” that prepares each firefighter to move up to the next level.
Another successful piece is the department’s partnership with Henderson County Schools to implement a fire science pathway at Henderson County High School. Just in its first year, 57 students have enrolled, Dixon said.
“Once they graduate, hopefully we can keep some of our hometown kids,” Dixon said, but added even if they don’t stay local, they will have skills to get jobs at other departments in Kentucky.
Dixon also credited city administrators and the city commission for support and funding for these initiatives—and also needed equipment and a new fire station currently under construction—but the greatest piece of his gratitude goes to the firefighters at HFD.
“They’re truly the ones who deserve that award, not me,” he said.