Assistant Fire Chief David Holbrook Resigns Position After 28 Years
January 22, 2008 It is with heartfelt sorrow that I have decided to submit a letter of resignation to the Town of Middlebury Select Board and Fire Chief Rick Cole. This was not in any way to do with whether the bid for a new tanker was accepted from myself or G. Stone's. It is because of a select few department members throughout the whole process circumventing myself, only trying to find items in my bid not meeting the specs (of which some were not even on the bid request I received and are usually done by the up fitter in my business). This lack of consideration and respect brought me to the conclusion that I no longer can belong to a department when instead of being treated like a valued fellow member with something to offer, I was avoided. The text of my letter of resignation is as follows: “I have been a tax payer in the town of Middlebury for over 30 years and a very dedicated member of its fire department for over 28 years, donating hundreds of hours of volunteer service, equipment and much more. As most of you know, I submitted a bid for your new tanker…from specs purposely written with the intent of purchasing a KW or Peterbuilt. I offered my services both verbally and in writing and did not receive any response to my offer or consideration for input from my experience and knowledge in this line of work. It's what I do every day and this was a slap in the face to me. If you had a lawyer in the department and had a legal issue, wouldn't you consult with them? The fire department has been family to me and many times I've spent much more time with them than with my own family. This has been an extremely emotional issue for me and not a decision taken lightly. Unfortunately, I am making this my official resignation letter as I no longer care to belong to an organization that does not respect or have the courtesy to appreciate its members and what they can and will do for them.” My employers, the Stone family, were shocked to hear of my decision. They did not know that I had made the decision until it was over and have always supported my loyalty and dedication to the fire service. Only my wife knew of my decision to resign at noon on the day I handed in my letter to the board. David Holbrook
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