Two Buxton Stalwarts farewelled and recognised (14/03/2021)
With some 67 years of combined service to CFA and three separate communities around Victoria, today the CFA and Buxton Fire Brigade said farewell to Bill and Judy Kleiss. These two Stalwarts of the brigade are about to relocate to Queensland and retire from CFA.
Bill Kleiss joined CFA as a member of Shoreham Fire Brigade in 1972 after being approached by the brigade's Captain. Bill says it didn't take long to make a decision and, over the years, he has been rewarded many times over by seeing the great work brigades do for people. In his 29 years at Shoreham, Bill was an Officer for more than 20 years including 14 years as their Captain.
Similarly, Judy Kleiss joined Shoreham Fire Brigade in 1988 and served in various operational roles. She was also the brigade's Secretary for a number of years whilst concurrently holding Lieutenant positions.
Judy and Bill moved to Jamieson in 2001 where Bill continued his involvement in CFA. After the Black Saturday fires, they moved to Buxton were the CFA journey continued. While Judy hadn't been involved at Jamieson, when Buxton's then Captain, Mark Somers, learnt of her previous roles she was encouraged to rejoin CFA and soon took on the Communications role.
In a ceremony following the brigade elections this morning, Bill and Judy were called forward by Captain Matt Carlton who thanked them for their combined service to our brigade and the Buxton community. A number of their family had joined the gathering to witness presentations by the brigade and the CFA.
Captain Carlton read a short precise of their service to three communities and, specifically, the impact they have had on the Buxton Fire Brigade. Matt presented Bill with Life Membership of the brigade in recognition of the extraordinary contribution he has made during his time at Buxton. In 2019, Bill was also recognised by Shoreham with Life Membership of that brigade.
Matt also presented a brigade trophy to them to record the brigade's gratitude for their work at the brigade.
Following brigade presentations, District 12 Assistant Chief Fire Officer, Rob Van Dorssar, thanked both Bill and Judy for their service to CFA and noted personal apologies from CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan, Deputy Chief Officer Ross Sullivan and CFA Board Member Dawn Hartog. Rob commented that Bill was already a strong member at Shoreham when Rob first joined the CFA staff as a young Assistant Regional Officer in then CFA Region 8 around Westernport.
Rob presented Judy with a CFA Long Service medal recognising her 20 years service to CFA. Bill was then bestowed with CFA Honorary Life Membership along with his 45 years Long Service medal. As Bill and Judy are leaving Victoria for the sun in Queensland, they are officially retiring from the Country Fire Authority and each was presented with framed retirement certificates recognising their contribution to CFA. In addition, the CFA Chief Officer, Jason Heffernan, sent personal letters of appreciation to both Judy and Bill which Rob read out before presenting them to each member. Bill was also presented with a special CFA plaque with the CFA emblem recording his nearly 50 years in CFA.
We wish them both all the best on their retirement and move north. They have made valuable contributions to our community through both the brigade and the Buxton Recreation Reserve Committee which Judy served on for many years including several as their Treasurer.
#ShorehamCFA
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