On February 13, 2016 the 68th Annual Installation of Officers Banquet was held at the Ridge Volunteer Fire Department Fire Hall. To start off the evening, the administrative, operational and auxiliary officers were sworn in by SMVFA Representative George Hayden and our own Becky Wathen, Past President, SMVFA.

2016 Administrative Officers:

President – Francis Raley
Vice President – James Raley
Secretary – Carley Dodge
Assistant Secretary – Eddie Raley
Treasurer – Johnny Wathen
Fire Chief – Ray Mercure

Board of Directors-
Tom Trossbach
Francis Raley
George Gatton
Ron Hafner
James Raley
Bruce Raley
Johnny Wathen
Carley Dodge
Bruce Raley
Mike Ridgell
George Franklin

2016 Line Officers:

Fire Chief – Ray Mercure
Assistant Chief – Eddie Raley
Deputy Chief – Darius Hawkins
Captain – Charlie Langley
Captain – Danny Gatton
Lieutenant – JC Trossbach
Lieutenant – Josh Wise
Lieutenant - Robert Simmons
Safety Officer – Phil Cooper
Safety Officer – Francis Raley
Chief Engineer – Peanut Gatton
Honorary Chaplain – Msgr. Carl Chimiak
Engineer – Bradley Cooper
Engineer – John Morrison
Engineer – Heavy Ridgell
Engineer – Ron Hafner
Engineer – Keith Raley
Engineer – Tony Ridgell
Engineer – Robbie Wood
Engineer – Charlie Bradburn
Engineer - John Keister

2016 Auxiliary Officers

President – Dawn Gatton
Vice President – Debbie Fairfax
Recording Secretary – Darlene Wood
Corresponding Secretary - Aggie Owens
Treasurer – Margie Cooper

After the swearing in, dinner prepared by Bailey's Catering was served. Following dinner, Past Chief, Joe Cooper led us into a memorial ceremony to honor the deceased members of the department. The following deceased members were added to the memorial located in front of our station this year – Bea Hafner and Patsy Raley. Family members were escorted to place flowers in remembrance.

The awards program followed, under the helm of Master of Ceremonies, Former St. Mary's County Commissioner Dan Raley.

Congratulations to the following award recipients:

President's Award – Bruce Raley

Chief's Award – Eddie Raley and Ray Mercure

Fireman of the year – Bruce Raley

Rookie of the year – Jannet Keister

Chief Engineer's Award – Charlie Bradburn

Joe Titus Fire Prevention Award – Quinton Ridgell (Presented by Phil Cooper on behalf of the Titus Family)

Auxiliary Member of the year – Mary Wise and Laura Cook

Auxiliary Outstanding Service Award - Cindy Bradburn

Auxiliary President Dawn Gatton presented the department with a check totaling $30,000 to be used for various ground and building improvements.

2015 Top 10 Emergency Responders:

1. Kevin Lorence 158 Calls
2. Keith Raley 154 Calls
3. Phil Cooper 147 Calls
4. Francis Raley 144 Calls
5. Quinton Ridgell 136 Calls
6. Bruce Raley 133 Calls
7. Karen Raley 129 Calls
8. Ray Mercure 114 Calls
9. Ron Hafner 110 Calls
10. Lori Raley 108 Calls

Length of Service Awards:

5 Years – Clyde Ridgell, Bertie Birch, and Debbie Fairfax

10 Years – Tommy Fairfax

15 Years - Darius Hawkins, Bob Woodburn and Justin Raley

25 Years (Life Member)– Eddie Raley

30 Years – Clancy Denhartog and David Sewell

45 Years – Robert Lee Owens

50 Years - Joe Cooper

65 Years - Dictator Cullison

Auxiliary Years of Service

5 Years - Mary Wise

20 Years - (Life Member) Jessica Titus

Carnival Chairman Mike Ridgell presented several years of service awards to citizens of the community for their years of commitment to the Ridge Carnival.

A dance followed with music by DJ Rich Wilson.

The Officers and members of the Ridge VFD also would like to thank the members of Bay District VFD for covering our area during the installation.

Also, a special thanks to Mary Franklin for the pictures.