Becoming a Company Officer

Brian F. McQueen is a retired volunteer Fire Chief of the Whitesboro Fire Department, Whitesboro, NY. He is a forty-one year member of the volunteer service. McQueen is a retired public school educator spending most of his time as a Principal and a District Level School Administrator.

His local fire service tenure lead him to become active on the county and state level with the Oneida County Fire Chiefs Association, Oneida County Volunteer Firemen’s Association and the Firemen’s Association of the State of New York (FASNY) where he served 10 years as a Director. In November 2017, Brian was awarded the prestigious FASNY Golden Trumpet Award for his diligent work on occupational cancer in the fire service and his ability to work with state government officials in the passing of the state’s Volunteer Firefighter Cancer Law. This past April, Brian was awarded the First National Volunteer Fire Council’s Chief James P. Seavey Sr. Award for Excellence in Health and Wellness.

McQueen also is a member of the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) where he currently sits on the Executive Committee and is Co-Chairman of the Cancer Task Force for the NVFC. Brian represents the NVFC on the National Firefighter’s Cancer Alliance. Brian was instrumental in developing a working relationship with the IAFC-VCOS Cancer Committee in assisting in the development of the Lavender Ribbon Report that was introduced in FRI this past August.

What Brian is proud of is his battle with occupational cancer. In 2014, he was diagnosed with B-Cell Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma which his oncologist says was attributed to his work as a volunteer firefighter. It was then that he went back to his community, worked with other volunteer leadership, and created the Believe 271 Foundation Inc., a not for profit Foundation developed to assist volunteer firefighters and their families who are battling cancer and life-threatening illnesses.

Joe Maruca was appointed chief of the West Barnstable (MA) Fire Department in 2005.  Prior to 2005 he served as a volunteer firefighter/EMT, lieutenant and captain for the West Barnstable Fire Department for 10 years, and had 18 years of prior service as a volunteer firefighter with the Sandwich Fire Department and Longmeadow Fire Department.  Chief Maruca is an attorney.  He has his BA in Business Administration from Boston University’s Questrom School of Management and a BS in Fire Department Administration from SUNY Empire State College.  He is a member of the NVFC Board of Directors, serves as chair of the FCAM Call/Volunteer Chief Committee, and is chair of the NFPA 1917 Technical Committee on Ambulances.

Chief Cash has been in the fire service since 1995 starting as a junior volunteer firefighter and currently serving as Assistant Chief of Training and Safety with the Cherryville Fire Department in Cherryville, NC.  He began as a career firefighter with the City of Shelby, NC in 2005, where he currently holds the rank of Battalion Chief of Operations over C-Platoon since 2015.

Chief Cash holds a Master’s of Business Administration from Columbia Southern University, a Bachelor’s of Science in Political Science concentrating in Town, City, and County Management degree from Appalachian State University, and an Associate’s degree in Fire Protection Technology from Cleveland Community College.

He is a graduate of the North Carolina Association of Fire Chief’s Executive Development Program in October 2015.  He received the NCSFA Firefighter of the Year in 2015, NCAFC Volunteer Officer of the Year in 2019, and he was awarded his Chief Fire Officer Designation by the Center for Public Safety Excellence in 2019.  He currently serves on the Executive Board of the North Carolina State Firefighters’ Association.

Chief Cash currently serves on the Cleveland County United Way as a Board Member and on the Fund Distribution Panel, as well as serving as Co-Chair for the City of Shelby’s United Way Campaign.  He is a volunteer with the Cherryville Little League program serving as a Board Member and Umpire Coordinator in the past.  He is a member of First Baptist Church in Cherryville.

Chief Cash currently resides in Ranlo, NC with his lovely bride Erin.  They enjoy traveling around the country and the Caribbean together.

Tom Miller is a 35 year veteran of the Sissonville Volunteer Fire Department in West Virginia and has served on the NVFC Board since 2008.  He has held many positions of leadership within his department and currently serves on the Department's Board of Directors in addition to being an active firefighter.  Tom is active in the West Virginia State Fireman's Association and currently serves as its Scholarship Chair.  Tom holds many certifications including, but not limited to: Firefighter II, Fire Officer II, Hazardous Materials Technician/Incident Commander, Swift Water Rescue Technician, Vehicle Machinery Technician, Rope Rescue Technician, and Fire Instructor III, and is an active Instructor with West Virginia University Fire Service Extension.  He serves on the NVFC's Health & Safety and Conference/Education Committees.  Tom also represents the NVFC on the NFPA 470 Technical Committee and the NFPA Joint 1001/472 Task Group.  In his paying job, Tom is employed as the Privacy & Security Officer for the West Virginia Department of Administration.

Kenn Fontenot is a charter member and first fire chief of the LeBlanc Volunteer Fire Department. Kenn is a principal member on the NFPA 1001 standards committee and alternate member of NFPA 1021, served for 12 years as the regional fire training coordinator at the Louisiana State University Fire and Emergency Training Institute, and is a past-president of the Louisiana State Firemen’s Association. He holds an associate degree in fire science.

David is a 22 year member of the fire service and currently serves as a Lieutenant and coassigned to the Training Division with the Columbia County Fire Rescue (Ga.) and a part time Firefighter with Grovetown (Ga) DPS. In addition, he serves on the Board of Directors for the Georgia State Firefighter's Association, National Volunteer Fire Council State Director, Georgia Pipeline Emergency Response Initiave Board of Directors, NFPA’s Working Group on Flammable Refrigerants, Alternate to NFPA 1021 and 1056 Committees, and was Secretary of IFSTA's Pumping Apparatus Driver Operator 3rd Edition Curriculum Committee, contributor to the “Training Officer’s Desk Reference”, and is a Safety and Health coordinator with HEPACO LLC. As an active instructor for the Georgia Fire Academy with Firefighter Basics, David is constantly engaged with teaching live fire, leadership, HAZMAT, and Firefighter Survival/RIT classes.