Dover Fire Department Welcomes Gerard T.  Smith as New Fire Chief

Dover Fire Chief Gerard T. Smith was sworn in during a ceremony at the Dover Town House on Tuesday, Sept. 9. (Photo Courtesy Town of Dover)

DOVER — The Town of Dover welcomes Gerard T. Smith as the next leader of the Dover Fire Department.

Chief Smith officially began his new role on Sept. 8, and on Sept. 9, a pinning and swearing-in ceremony was held at the Dover Town House.

“My top priority is to ensure that firefighters, citizens and the businesses of Dover are provided with safe, efficient, and high-quality emergency services,” said Chief Smith, who brings more than two decades of experience to the post.

For 24 years, Chief Smith served as a Firefighter/Paramedic with the Westwood Fire Department, including seven years as a Lieutenant. He was the Department’s first paramedic hire.

Chief Smith also received the Westwood Fire Department’s Medal of Valor.

While serving in Westwood, Chief Smith was the department’s Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) program representative from 2003 to 2017 and oversaw the transition from Basic Life Support (BLS) to Advanced Life Support (ALS) as the department’s ALS Coordinator.

Smith also held numerous volunteer positions in town, including:

• Westwood Council on Aging Meals on Wheels and Handy Man programs
• Community CPR instructor
• Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts instructor
• Co-founder and coach in the Westwood Youth Lacrosse League (and Westwood High School assistant coach)
• Westwood Youth Soccer President/coach
• Westwood Pop Warner Medical Director/coach
• Westwood Little League Medical Director/coach
• Westwood Girls Lacrosse coach
• Westwood Gridiron President

Chief Smith has been ice and water rescue-trained and was a member of the Westwood Fire Department’s Dive Rescue Team. He served on the Westwood Fire Department’s Honor Guard since 2002.

Chief Smith, a Boston resident, earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Fire Science from Waldorf University, an associate’s degree in Fire Science from Columbia Southern University, and earned his Paramedic Certification at the Massachusetts Bay Community College. He graduated from the Massachusetts Fire Academy in 2001.

Prior to the hiring of Chief Smith, Dover’s Board of Fire Engineers (BOFE) appointed a seven-member Fire Chief Search Workgroup (FCSWG), composed of several town officials and a citizen, to review applicants. The FCSWG chose a group of finalists and presented the list to the BOFE for final selection.

The FCSWG heard from 12 applicants, and screening interviews were held with the candidates. After meeting several times to review the applicants’ credentials and interview content, the field was narrowed to five candidates. Those five each completed an all-day assessment, and the results were forwarded to the FCSWG for review and discussion.

Ultimately, four candidates were recommended and forwarded to the BOFE for consideration. Following a round of interviews, the BOFE selected Chief Smith.

“First, I’d like to thank Interim Fire Chief James W. Wright for helping to lead the Dover Fire Department as we searched for our next chief,” said Kate Cannie, Chair of Dover’s Board of Fire Engineers. “Please join me in welcoming Chief Smith to Dover. We conducted an exhaustive search and determined that Chief Smith was the best fit of all the applicants to lead the Dover Fire Department into the future. Based on his past experience and community involvement, Chief Smith will surely be an asset to the Dover community.”

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Dover Fire Chief Gerard T. Smith started on the job Sept. 8. On Sept. 9, he was pinned and sworn in during a ceremony at the Dover Town House. (Photo Courtesy Town of Dover)