The City of Winter Haven will swear in its new fire chief on Thursday.
Joseph "Sonny" Emery Jr., 46, was promoted to the position of fire chief on Jan. 10. He's overseen the department in an interim role since last June.
While Emery said he's a man of few words, he does have one to describe the way the promotion made him feel: honored. "It felt like God had just opened the door that I needed to walk through," Emery said. "I feel like I'm where I need to be right now in the department." Emery, the son of a firefighter, started his career in Polk County around 25 years ago. He was a volunteer, part-time firefighter for about six months at the county before taking an open position in Winter Haven in 1998, where he's been ever since.
He fell in love with being a firefighter: the knowledge of how to handle emergencies, the comradery, the schedule.