Boyd Garrison retires from TAVFD board after 40-plus years


Theodosia Area Volunteer Fire Department Board President Boyd Garrison stepped down from the TAVFD Board of Directors on Oct. 3 after serving several terms in the last 40 years. Garrison says he’ll likely still help out with the department, driving trucks when the firefighters need help at area fires.

In 1976, Jimmy Carter was elected president, grocery ads in the Ozark County Times advertised bacon for 49 cents a pound and Ozark County natives Boyd and Freeda Garrison made the big move back home to Theodosia from Springfield. 

“Of course, we were from here, and we were happy to move back,” Boyd told the Times last week, explaining that he had graduated from Gainesville High School in 1959 and moved to Springfield after high school for work.

“At the time, John Butynek owned the DX station here in Theodosia, and I went to work as a mechanic in the garage for Mr. Butynek,” said Boyd, who now owns the DX station. 

“The Theodosia Hills Development Association had this little one-ton truck with a water tank and a motorized sprayer they used on fires. They left it at the station, and I worked on it while I was there,” Boyd said.

In the 1980s, the Theodosia Area Volunteer Fire Department fire chief at the time, Red Coons, approached Boyd and asked if he’d be interested in serving on the fire department’s board of directors. Boyd agreed to do so.

“It started my first term on the board,” Boyd said. “I’ve served several different periods in several different positions from that time.”

The first time was probably seven or eight years long. “But I left, because we’d started a dairy farm, and I just didn’t have the time to do it,” he said. “But somehow I got back on the board and served for another 10 years.”

Boyd hung up his fire department board hat for the last time on Oct. 3 after he officially left the fire department’s board of directors. 

 

A season of change

Boyd says he’s seen a tremendous amount of change over the 40 years he’s been involved with the department. 

“When I first started, Theodosia Hills Development Area was just being built. We had nowhere near the number of members we have now,” he said. “We have a little over 700 paid members now. Back then, we didn’t have a fraction of that. Probably less than 100 members.”

As the Theodosia Hills subdivisions began to grow, so did the population in Theodosia. The fire department began billing non-members  when responding to fires. The fire department built and operated out of a small three-bay department at the Theodosia Fire Station. 

“We’ve really grown since then,” Boyd said, explaining that the TAVFD now has four stations – one in Isabella, one in Theodosia, one on NN Highway and one in Ocie. “We only had a couple trucks back then, and now look at it.”

In addition to more buildings, trucks and equipment, the fire department has come a long way in terms of accounting procedures and organization.

“Many years ago, we were on the scene of a fire, and the man told us he was a member, that he’d paid his dues,” Boyd said. “Then, come to find out later, he hadn’t ever paid dues. The problem was, no one knew if he’d paid or not. We had no idea if he was a member.”

The firefighters and board knew they needed to improve their bookkeeping system, and they’ve worked hard at doing just that. 

“Now when we’re at a fire, we can look it up and see within five or 10 minutes if someone has paid their dues and is a member,” Boyd said. “We have bylaws, a budget to meet, records to keep up with, monthly reports and audits to go through. It’s more work than most people realize,” Boyd said. “Our board of directors duties set the tone and direction of our organization by its strategic  thinking and planning with budgets, policies and procedures. No one director has the power to make decisions for the board of directors. The TAVFD firefighters and EMS personnel handle the ‘day-to-day’ operations of the department, which are very important.”

 

The good and the bad

Boyd is quick to explain that the Theodosia Area VFD  board members are only allowed to fight fires in emergency situations, but he said the fire department does need more firefighters.

“It’s a conflict of interest for board members to also be firefighters,” he explained. “So we only do it if it’s an emergency. But as you can imagine with a volunteer-run organization, there are times when it’s an emergency, and all hands are needed to help.”

In addition to working toward better practices and procedures as a board member, Boyd has helped fight several intense fires over the years. When asked what the most memorable fires were that he’s helped with, he responded, “You want the good ones or the bad ones?”

The worst one he was involved with “was the fire where Glenda Perry died,” he said. “It was horrible. I think I hauled three loads of water to that fire, and we just couldn’t get it put out.”

The Jan. 5, 2017, fire that killed 72-year-old Glenda Perry was caused by “smoking while on oxygen therapy,” according to the Missouri Department of Public Safety. Perry was trapped inside a bathroom and died in the fire. Perry’s grandson, 26-year-old Dustin Perry, escaped with minor burns and smoke inhalation. 

“The best fire outcome – if you can call any fire good – was probably the fire at Linda Worner’s house,” Boyd said. “She called me to tell me her electric wheelchair was smoking. I drove over to her house, and she was sitting on the back porch with the house on fire. If I hadn’t showed up, who knows what would have happened. No one was hurt, and they easily could’ve been. That’s when you know you’ve made a difference. The house was a total loss, even with multiple fire departments responding to the fire!”

 

The real heroes 

During its Oct. 3 meeting, the TAVFD board elected Howard Freeman as the new board president, replacing Boyd. Other board members include Jerry Inman, who serves as vice president; Bob Bochert, secretary; Marvin Laswell, treasurer; and Norman Jarrett, member at large. Two paid employees, who are not board members, include Nancy Burnett, recording secretary, and Rheta Walker, membership clerk and treasurer. 

Although Boyd will no longer be at the head of the TAVFD board meetings, he says he doubts he’ll be able to stay away completely.

“I figure I’ll probably stick around to help. I’d be glad to drive a fire truck from time to time to help out,” he said. 

His time with the TAVFD board has provided the Garrisons with some great experiences and good friends. 

“We’ve had a lot of good memories and met a lot of friends over the years,” said Boyd’s wife, Freeda, who served as a TAVFD Auxillary member over the years, helping with fundraisers and dinners, among other things. 

“Bill Jones was an old timer who has now passed away,” Boyd said. “But, boy, did he do a lot of good things for the department.” 

The years of volunteer service have been worth it, Boyd said, and he’s happy to leave a legacy of helping his neighbors. The Garrisons say they’ve learned a lot over the years they’ve been involved with TAVFD, but the most important lessons were the simplest. 

“There’s one thing I know: Good firefighters – and I’m talking about the good ones, the ones who care about the people – they are real heroes,” Freeda said.

 

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