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Bob Schmanski,
Captain, Station 2. This third
generation volunteer firefighter has been around fire stations
since the 1980’s because of his dad’s service when he was a kid.
Later, while studying to become a Fire Protection and Safety
Engineering Technician at Oklahoma State University, he lived at a
local VFD because there were no dorm rooms available, so he became
a student volunteer. Bob’s firefighting
experience provides valuable assistance in his career as an
underwriting manager for AIG (American International Group) a
large insurance company, where he writes high risk property
insurance policies. "Understanding exactly what happens in a
structure fire, for example, and knowing how a fire department
responds," he explained, "helps me identify realistic fire risks
for clients, and to write appropriate policies for them."
Bob volunteers at PVFD nights and on weekends, and likes Station 2
because it is a little slower paced with fewer calls than Station
1. He and his wife, Dana -- who he says is truly his very best
friend -- are the parents of Jared, 9 and Madison age 5. Bob says
that during some recent family illnesses, he was amazed at the
incredible support they received from PVFD members. "Thankfully,
everything turned out OK, but everyone was so helpful, and we
certainly appreciated this." Sometimes, Bob says, something
happens that reminds you why you volunteer. "We were at a PVFD BBQ
at Station 2 a year or so ago when a family pulled up in their
car, and a teenaged boy got out using crutches. After a while, he
came over to me and said, ‘You cut me out of my car...I remember
your voice. I just wanted to thank you in person.’ That meant a
lot to me." Bob says that after 9-11 there’s no such thing
as a routine call. He believes that the public is more
understanding about what it takes to be a firefighter. "More folks
stop us to just say ‘hi’ or ‘good job’ and they really seem to
respect this volunteer role."
 Bill
Pilkington is Lieutenant at
Station 2, and serves as 3rd Vice President on the PVFA Board of
Directors. He, too, comes from a firefighting family -- four out
of five brothers, his sister and his Dad are also volunteer
firefighters. (The other brother had back surgery or he’d be one,
too.) Bill attended Texas A&M where he earned his degree in
Accounting and Finance. When he moved to Houston to practice as a
CPA, he moved into the Ponderosa service area, so he joined PVFD.
At a Greenspoint Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours,
he met his future wife, Marva, who was the sales manager at the
hotel where the event was held. Today, they are the proud parents
of daughter Kelley (three and a half) and son Chris (one and a
half). Bill is an "extreme" athlete and competes in
Triathlons and Marathons. He, too, is especially interested in
helping the younger volunteers at Station 2. "There is so much we
can do to help those coming up in the department to gain sound,
hands-on experience. This provides the necessary encouragement to
the young volunteers to keep up their training to advance, and it
also contributes directly to building PVFD’s future." "There
is so much about being a volunteer firefighter that builds a sense
of belonging and pride. Here’s something that you can do that
satisfies a sense of adventure and action, allows you to spend
time with folks who share your interests, and, at the same time,
allows you to do something positive for your community."
Tony Spitzenberger
has always known that he
would be a firefighter; his career was simply never a topic for
debate. Originally from a small town in South Dakota, Tony
relocated to Houston in 1972 when his dad, who worked for Shell
Oil, was transferred to the company’s corporate office. He
remembers the early days in the
Ponderosa service area when it was actually safe enough to ride
his bike on "Jackrabbit Road", while many of the side roads were
gravel and not yet paved. His family lived across the street
from Ponderosa Station 1, and by 1979, Tony had hung around the
firefighters persistently enough to become the first junior
member to ride along without a parent accompanying him. He says
that like many other firefighters and paramedics, he was a huge
fan of the TV show "EMERGENCY!" as a child and credits "Gage," "DeSoto"
and "Station 51" with helping to spark his career interest.
While attending Westfield High School, he became a Junior
Lieutenant and remembers being "called out" of class to fight
fires. Tony graduated from Texas A&M Fire School in 1986. Having
spent 13 years with the City of Houston Fire Department, he was
recently promoted to Captain. As a volunteer with Ponderosa, he
served as Fire Marshal for seven years with responsibility for
statistics reporting, assessing fire scenes before calling in
outside investigators, and assisting in their investigations.
Later, following his election to Assistant Chief – Operations,
he was responsible for overseeing the construction of all three
stations and the new training facility. He is certified in
Technical Rescue, HazMat, in Scuba and Rapelling, and as a
Paramedic. Tony and his wife Rhonda, who met as PVFD members,
have three children. His long-term goal is to retire as Senior
Captain or Chief after 30 years service with the City so he can
relax and enjoy their future grandchildren. In his virtually
nonexistent spare time, Tony enjoys hunting and fishing.
 Robert
Logan
also lived across the street from
Station 1, and started hanging around the station when he was
eight years old. His career path was cemented the first time he
saw a fire truck. He took a course after high school to become a
Paramedic, and went on to graduate from the A&M Fire School. In
2001, Robert accepted a job with Houston Fire Department as a
Paramedic/Firefighter. In reality, he now has three jobs – with
Houston, Ponderosa and as a CCEMS Paramedic and dispatcher. Robert
received the Dispatcher of the Year Award in 2000 and 2001. "I
actually DO have a life," he explains, but he spends a lot of it
sleeping, preparing for one of his jobs, or just catching up. This
young man leaves little to chance, and has specific goals and
objectives laid out for himself and his career. He intends to "go
as far as he can go" in all his assignments, and aggressively
strives for whatever is "next." He likes achieving positions of
increasing responsibility, and while he admits to being something
of a "control freak" about assignments, he says he has the
confidence that he can do the job right. During the major 2-alarm
fire at Springwoods United Methodist church that cold night in
2000, Robert served as Command for battling the fire. He is also
credited with rescuing an elderly lady during a fire at the
Chestnut Park Apartments. With the living room ablaze, he searched
the bedroom and finally found her lying unconscious on the
bathroom floor. When people ask him why he is a firefighter, he is
quick to respond that he "would not be happy doing anything else.
I love this job, it is everything I ever wanted to do." Originally
from Brooklyn, NY, this 23 year-old has already bought his first
home and works around the house as a "hobby."
 JIM
LUPLOW didn’t start out wanting to be a fireman when he grew
up in Saginaw, Michigan.
Instead, he had flying on his mind. After attending Eastern
Michigan University, Jim joined the U.S. Marine Corps and spent
the next 8 years in the Corps’
Infantry and Heavy Weapons unit and then in the Marine
Reserves. In 1994 his wife, Jacquline, was offered a teaching
position with Aldine ISD, so they packed up daughter Katrina and
moved to Houston. His military
training proved useful when Jim applied to join the Houston
Police Department, and after being admitted as a cadet, he
attended the Academy for 6
months. Today, Jim is a patrolman with HPD in addition to volunteering
with Ponderosa. He made Lieutenant at PVFD Station 3 and was
subsequently elected Captain in
November 2001. Jim is dedicated and experienced
in providing emergency services, and says what little spare time
he has, is spent either with his
family or at the station.
 Patrick
Casner, known around the station as “The Warden” because
he is the coordinator for community services, has been with
Ponderosa for about 14 years. “My brother knew someone at PVFD
back in 1981, and he asked if we wanted to join up. I found it
exciting and rewarding, so I’m still here,” Pat explains.
These days, he says he leaves most of the firefighting to the
“younger” firefighters. With plenty of experience and
training in pumping techniques and equipment, he has the
critical responsibility for all truck and apparatus maintenance,
and says he now does what he does best -- “I make water go
from point A to point B.” Pat is especially proud to have been
asked to be an assistant instructor at the Texas A&M Fire
School for Harris County for the last 5 years. When he talks
about his 20 year old daughter, Tiffany -- “my pride and joy”
-- Pat’s grin extends ear to ear. Pat says the love of his
life is Stacey, who gives him lots of support.Casner’s regular
“day job” is with Sear’s Automotive department.
 Scott
Windisch, PVFD Deputy Chief, has been affiliated with
Ponderosa for more than half his life. During the past 18 years
he has had special training in Hazardous Materials, Technical
Rescue, Vehicle Rescue, Terrorist Training, and as a Fire
Service Instructor. Scott is currently working toward an
Associates Degree in Fire Science, and is a Master Certified
Volunteer Firefighter and an Advanced Certifified Career
Firefighter. He comes by his passion for firefighting quite
naturally; his dad is Fred Windisch, Chief at Ponderosa. He says
firefighting was fun when he started and it’s still fun now.
In addition to his volunteer hours with Ponderosa, Scott has
been with The Woodlands Fire Department for the past 10 years, and
is now a Lieutenant/EMT. When he does take time off, Scott is an
avid fisherman and enjoys a variety of water sports, including
riding his personal watercraft. If you ask Scott what is the
best thing about him, he’ll quickly say his energetic young son, Cody.
MITCH
HUBBARD
has been with Ponderosa for 12 of his 30
years. Mitch graduated
from
Westfield High School and went on to Harris County Community
College for EMT/EMT-I basic level courses. He is currently
working on a Fire Technology Degree at Houston Community
College. In addition to service with PVFD, he is a
firefighter/driver for The Woodlands Fire Department. Never
content with the status-quo, Mitch has pursued a number of
specialized training opportunities to enhance his fire fighting
skills. He gained certification as a Rescue Specialist through
TEEX, and has also completed courses in high-rise rescue,
vehicle rescue, trench rescue, confined space rescue, and
Haz-Mat. Mitch will tell you that fire and rescue "is"
his life and, for now, he devotes most of his waking hours to
his career. Why does he do it? "That’s a very simple
question," he explains. "It is fun and exciting and it’s
cool to be able to help people." Mitch responded to
the World Trade Center disaster of 9-11 as part of the Texas
Task Force.
 DUSTIN
MCDONALD
joined PVFD while he was a senior at
Westfield High School. "I was hanging around with the wrong
kids, and joining the fire department gave me a whole new
perspective on things and actually kept me out of trouble,"
he explains. "After graduating, I joined the Coast Guard
and served for four years as a damage controlman, stationed in
New York and Los Angeles. Having trained in Marine fire fighting
in the service, when he left the Coast Guard he earned his EMT
and fire fighting certification at Texas A&M University. He
worked for a year at the Port of Houston, and then became a
career firefighter with the Conroe Fire Department and returned
as a volunteer member at PVFD. If you ask Dustin what he does in
his spare time, he doesn’t miss a beat before answering,
"Volunteer."
That may change before too long, however. Dustin and his wife
Amy are now expecting their second child. "We’re really
excited about this," Dustin grins, "and I know I’ll
be spending more time with my wife in the months ahead...and
that’s fine with me." When he does have some leisure
time, Dustin says he is an avid outdoorsman and, given the
opportunity, loves to do some hunting or fishing.
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