In a career spanning four decades Henry Barton leaves behind a strong legacy in CFA.
After retiring last year as Officer-In-Charge of Warrnambool Fire Station, Henry has dedicated his life to working side by side with volunteers and career staff to help the community.
Today, Henry receives an Australian Fire Service Medal as part of the Australia Day Honours.
“The experiences I have gained as a volunteer and working for CFA has really set me up well for life,” he said.
“I have learned a lot of skills through CFA and I can use them to help others. I feel good about my own personal development, and I feel comfortable knowing that through my experiences I can deal with many and varied difficult situations.”
Henry began serving the community in 1971 and has held many and varied roles throughout this time, starting and ending his career as a volunteer. He first was a volunteer at Montrose and moved through the ranks, and moved to Tatura before becoming a career firefighter in 1976.
He has been a staff member at Warrnambool since 1985, and OIC of the brigade since 2004 before retiring from the role last year.
He is recognised as a true leader of the brigade, gaining the respect from both staff and volunteers at Warrnambool.
Henry was an integral part of building the new fire station in the town, and for the past 25 years has been a driving force in the development of Technical Rescue Response. He identified a need for trained confined space rescue personnel in the area and began this process by undertaking his own training and qualifications.
He was also one of the first qualified Juvenile Fire Awareness Intervention Program practitioners in the state for CFA, is an accredited Level 3 Incident Controller, and displayed outstanding leadership and direction during significant emergency events including Black Saturday and the Hazelwood Mine Fire. He was instrumental in creating the CFA operated Incident Control Centre at Warrnambool with its footprint covering three municipalities.
While he retires and focuses on the next chapter of his life he remains a volunteer with Headquarters Brigade and is said to be a true example of what it is to be a CFA member serving their community.
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Author: CFA Media