A lifelong drive and passion for fighting fires brought Randolph โTadโ Pedersen to Garibaldi in October, where he now serves as the chief of the fire department. Pedersen said that he is looking forward to helping the department bounce back from a rough patch after former Chief Jay Marugg resigned in protest over the departmentโs budget in May and that he has already been impressed by the communityโs support for the department.
โI think that the relationship between the community and the fire department here is exceptional and that excites me,โ Pedersen said. Born and raised in Knappa, Pedersen started on the path towards becoming a firefighter by becoming an ambulance explorer scout when he was a freshman in high school before joining the local fire department as a volunteer when he was 18. Pedersen worked his way up through the volunteer ranks, becoming an assistant chief by 1996 and continuing to volunteer until his move to Garibaldi.
