For Kevin Peak, the journey to his appointment as Delran’s new fire chief is not one he foresaw as a child. As the only firefighter in his family, he aspired to be a firefighter until the day he and his friend ended up at the firehouse.
As the story goes, the native of Delran and his friend went to station 232. A unit had just returned from a call and was wrapping up a hose when Peak and his friend decided to give them a hand. Before long, Peak found himself in the chief’s office filling out an application.
That was when his quest to one day become Delran Fire Department chief took root.
Slowly but surely, Peak began his rise within the ranks as an assistant engineer, moving on to chief engineer, lieutenant for four years, captain for two years, a four-year term as battalion chief of Station 232 and ultimately chief this year.
“It felt great to be elected as the chief,” he said. “I was hoping to get it and I’m happy that I got it. It’s something I was striving for to further my career in the Delran Fire Department.”
“You always want to reach that highest point, and with the help of many past and current chiefs both in and out of our department, the help and support of the membership and the support of the board fire commissioners giving us the ability to take classes to further our knowledge, I was able to get myself to that point.” Peak added.
Since joining the fire department, Peak’s sense of joy and accomplishment along the way — coupled with the sheer fact of helping residents in need — has given him a great deal of satisfaction. But the fire department also instilled great characteristics.
“The fire department has helped me build character aspects within myself, leadership aspects and communication aspects.” the chief noted. “Even with things in my regular job, I am able to direct people in a more professional manner and an effective manner.”
Now that Peak is the newly appointed chief, he acknowledged there are many issues on his plate. The chief is in charge of all apparatus and personnel at Stations 231 and 232, attends commissioner and company meetings as well as leadership and regular training, is the commanding officer on scene and oversees the budget for the fiscal year.
While the list of duties may be long, Peak surely believes he is the right man for the job.
