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Crago retiring after 31 years of volunteering

TORONTO — Clark Crago is retiring from the Toronto Fire Service after 31 and a half years of volunteering, but he wants residents to know he is not leaving emergency response services in the area.

“A lot of people heard I was leaving the fire service and thought I was done with public service, and I am not,” he said.

In fact, it looks like Crago will be busier than ever. He will continue to run the Toronto Emergency Medical Services, for which he has served as chief director of operations for the past 16 years, and he has been appointed by the Jefferson County commissioners to the 911 board.

Crago also is part of the county EMS planning committee; Jefferson County tactical EMS response team for the Drug Task Force; an investigator with the Jefferson County coroner’s office; and member of the Ohio EMS Chiefs Association.

“I am still moving in a forward direction with public safety — moving the area in the right direction,” he said. “I am not getting any more sleep at night, that’s for sure.”

Despite his busy schedule, Crago is doing what he always wanted to do.

“I always loved being a fireman and paramedic,” he said. “When I was a kid, the big show was ‘Emergency!’ and I wanted to be like them. I grew up down the street from the old fire station and I can remember running out to watch the trucks.”

The early interest in paramedics and EMS has helped lead Crago and the area of public safety in Toronto to where it is now.

Crago was integral in getting TEMS set up and run as an independent professional ambulance service providing assistance to Toronto, Empire, Stratton, Knox Township and parts of Island Creek Township, covering approximately 25 square miles and approximately 15,000 people.

On Crago’s LinkedIn professional page, he explained the process.

“After 15 years of volunteer service, it was clear to me and others in the EMS organization that the demands of providing ambulance care to the community had become too great to remain a reliable volunteer service. I was instrumental in implementing a plan to create a new paid service that would staff personnel around the clock. This was no small task. The TEMS members, government officials and the public had to support the idea for it to succeed. First, an ambulance station was built to house the new entity. City, village and township government officials passed legislation and formed an ambulance district. Finally, a 1.5-mill tax levy was placed on the ballot to fund the salaries of the paramedics and EMTs. The public supported the issue overwhelmingly by passing the levy with 72 percent approval. On Jan. 1, 2003, TEMS Joint Ambulance District officially opened its doors with me as the chief director of operations,” he said.

Crago hopes his work with the Ohio EMS Chiefs Association will help provided much needed support to paramedics and ambulance services in the state.

“We are working with legislators for more funding for the third service (EMS),” he said. “You often here about fire and police departments, but we get forgotten or left out.”

Still Crago said that leaving the fire service wasn’t an easy thing.

“It was hard to walk away,” he said. “I am on my fourth chief. I think of some of the older firefighters, some that are gone now, and the things they taught me got me where I am today.”

Former fire chief and current Toronto Council President Frank McEwen and current Chief Bill Scheel said Crago will be missed as a member of the fire service.

“His dedication — he did everything,” McEwen said.

“He was here when I was hired here,” Scheel said. “He helped me out a lot. He was good at recruiting people for both here and the ambulance service.”

Both men said that even now, they know that they will still be working along side Crago.

“The advantage is that that TEMS also receives these calls,” McEwen said. “He will be there.”

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