Doug S. is retiring in August. He was a captain when I came on the job in 1973. He is pushing 70 now and is captain of engine 1 in downtown San Jose. It is a running company, lots of calls at night and one of the busiest in the city. I don't know how he does it. When I was in my 30s and 40s I could be up all night and have a life the next day. I would get off duty and could work on my home projects. In my late 40s and 50s night calls would ruin me the next day, I would go home and nap , but I never caught up.

Doug was a man to be respected. He was ubber competent and a great guy, a role model to those who worked with him. He would have been a great Battalion Chief or more. He had a few bumps over the years that stole from him the well deserved promotions, but I think he loved being in the right side of the cab. That is where the action is and he was very good at it.

When someone with that much knowledge retires the loss to the department is staggering. I wish there was someway to transfer his knowledge to the people coming up. Most people do not understand how long of an adjustment it is. For me the worst was knowing I would never be in the cab of a fire engine again going code 3 to something that was going to take all my skill and competence to control. I still miss it after 13 years.