Margaret Lockwood
Daylesford Fire Brigade Lieutenant, Glenn Webster, has been highly commended by the CFA with the Living the Values award.
Picture this: in the thick of the 2020 Gippsland fires a team of 25 CFA volunteers are gathered near Walwa with forest on fire on three sides. Glenn is the Strike Team Leader. He addresses them, asking for a minute’s silence to remember the firefighters who had lost their lives the day before at Omeo. He then tells them that they have done an extraordinary job in saving Walwa but that this is their most important day – that the threat is not over, that even after 48 hours trees can come down, that they must remain vigilant on this, their last day of deployment. He then goes to each tanker and shakes the hand of every crew member. They all came home safely when their shift was over.
Glenn has served as a strike team leader on many occasions at major fires over the last few years. His commendation in the Spirit of CFA Awards is not just about length of service, being a leader at major fires or seniority. Glenn walks the talk every time he is working with Daylesford’s CFA volunteers. He is responsible for coordinating training at Daylesford and ensuring that volunteers learn the skills to be highly professional in their work that saves lives and property. He is also the training coordinator for the Glenlyon Group of eight local brigades. He spends countless hours working quietly with individuals and groups so that they are the best they can be.
Glenn is also a local ambulance officer and has helped devise training that ensures both emergency services can work together efficiently and effectively at motor vehicle accidents and other emergencies.
The Spirit of CFA Awards recognise outstanding achievement and significant contributions made in local communities and in the State of Victoria. In the 2022 awards ceremony held recently, Glenn was highly commended in the prestigious Living the Values Award which honours CFA members who exemplify CFA values: respect, empathy and understanding, integrity, honesty and fairness, working collaboratively, maintaining open communication and adapting to change.
As one who has worked with Glenn on training and at local emergency incidents, I say that we should be very proud of his achievements and thankful for his tremendous service to our community.
