David F. Clark was honored on Tuesday, August 31st at his retirement celebration at the Illinois Fire Service Institute (IFSI). Clark is retiring after 34 years of service to the Institute and more than 45 years in the Fire Service. His most recent position at IFSI was that of Deputy Director, a position he has held since 1998. Fire service leaders from throughout Illinois gathered to honor Dave Clark for his service, including the State Fire Marshal Larry Matkaitis, Representatives of the Chicago Fire Department, Illinois Fire Chiefs, and Illinois Association of Fire Protection Districts representing the more than 42,000 paid and volunteer firefighters and EMT’s statewide, some of the more than 500 IFSI field staff instructors statewide.
IFSI Deputy Director David Clark Recognized During Retirement Celebration
During the ceremony, Clark was presented with Illinois House Resolution No. 1164, sponsored by Representative Donald L. Moffitt of Galesburg, which recognized him for his service with IFSI, the Illinois Terrorism Task Force and U.S. Army. Clark was also recognized for his role on the Illinois Critical Incident Stress Debriefing Team and his service with the Brimfield Community Fire Protection District and Normal Fire Department.
In addition to the state honor, Congressman Timothy Johnson formally recognized Clark on May 5, 2010 from the U.S. House floor. “His dedication, expertise and passion have impacted so many firefighters throughout his time at IFSI and his impact on the field of fire fighting will be sorely missed,” according to Rep. Johnson’s comments published in the Congressional Record.
“Dave has been a tremendous asset to the Institute, building training programs for tens of thousands of first responders, throughout his years of service he has consistently focused on helping firefighters do their job safely and effectively,” Richard Jaehne (IFSI Director) said.
Clark was joined by his wife Marcie and other family members at the celebration.
Taking over for Clark is Roger Lunt of Taylorville. Lunt has been with IFSI as full-time staff since 2008. Prior to that, Lunt served on IFSI’s field staff for more than 25 years. Lunt served as Taylorville Fire Department’s Chief from 2004 to 2008 and served on the Macomb Fire Department prior to that.
The Illinois Fire Service Institute is the statutory fire academy for the state of Illinois. In addition to training provided at the Champaign campus, the Institute offers DHS grant-approved technical rescue, HAZMAT and NIMS training, hands-on fire officer training, online classes and conducts training throughout the state at Regional Training Centers and local fire stations. The mission of the Illinois Fire Service Institute is to help firefighters do their work through training, education, information and research.
For more information about the Institute, call 217-333-8921.
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