Cherokee Fire Celebrates 50 Years of Service On December 8, 1973, the Oak Grove Volunteer Fire Department was established. Three years later, it became the first career fire department in unincorporated Cherokee County and has grown into what we know today as Cherokee County Fire & Emergency Services (CCFES). Nearly 300 fire department members, retirees, and friends of the fire service recently came together to celebrate CCFES’s 50th Anniversary. The event included a welcome message from Deputy Chief Kevin Lanier, presentation of the colors by the CCFES Honor Guard, invocation by Chaplain Dana McPherson, testimonials by citizens impacted by CCFES over the years, remarks from Cherokee County Board of Commissioners Chairman Harry Johnston, keynote speaker introduction by Deputy Chief Shane West, and an address by Fire Chief Eddie Robinson. The keynote speaker, Sean Georges, was invited to talk at this event due to his wealth of leadership knowledge and his personal life experiences that led him to have a great appreciation for public safety professionals. Georges spent several days before the event participating in a ride-a-long with the firefighters of CCFES. He opened his speech by saying “I am amazed by these men and women.” He added, “They are professional at the highest level.” During his address, Georges emphasized that leaders have a sacred responsibility to serve their teammates in the direction of a shared mission. He told the story about how his daughter’s life was saved by first responders who met their responsibility to lead as a team, stayed mission-focused, and had the audacity of belief. After Georges’ speech, Fire Chief Eddie Robinson recognized the fire department retirees in the audience as well as past and present elected officials, public safety agency directors, and the county manager. Chief Robinson closed out the event by reading the names of the Cherokee County firefighters who served in CCFES and are no longer with us. “Tradition has it that in the early days of firefighting, a company would receive an alarm by ringing in a code. The alarm code 5-5-5 would signify a company returning home to quarters,” said Robinson.Robinson invited everyone to stand and hold hands, as he rang a bell in the 5-5-5 sequence. A video highlighting the event can be viewed at Youtube.com/@CherokeeCountyFire.
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