Building Tomorrow's Leaders with Passion and Pride

Cheryl Allen is the Fire Chief of 80 firefighters and the Ambulance Service Director for Logan Aluminum, a large industrial facility near Russellville in Western Kentucky. Chief Allen is a 40-year fire service veteran and is currently the fire chief of the Russellville Rural Volunteer Fire Department in Russellville, Kentucky. She holds IFSAC accredited certifications and has an AAS in Fire Rescue Science Technology and is a Kentucky-certified EMT instructor. Chief Allen is adjunct faculty for Kentucky Fire Rescue Training Area 4 and a guest instructor for TEEX at Texas A&M University. She is currently the Chaplin for the Kentucky Association of Fire Chiefs and is the Chair for Logan County's Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC).

Chief Allen was the 2017 Kentucky Volunteer Fire Chief of the Year at the Kentucky Association of Fire Chiefs’ Leadership Convention. She was a founder and President of the newly formed South-Central Kentucky Firefighters Association and currently holds the position of Vice President. Chief Allen sits on the Board of the Kentucky State Fire Commission as representative for the Volunteer Fire Chiefs across Kentucky.

John M. Buckman III served as a German Township Fire Chief managing volunteers for 35 years. He is most proud of the title “pawpaw.” Leslie his wife has spent 29 years together. He currently serves as Education Coordinator for the International Association of Fire Chief Volunteer and Combination Officers Section. He is the Director of Government and Regional Outreach for IamResponding. He served as the Indiana Fire Academy Director for 15 years. He served as President of the International Association of Fire Chief in 2001-2002.

He has authored over 150 articles in various publications. In 1996 he was selected by Fire Chief Magazine as Fire Chief of the Year in 1996. He has published 4 books and 7 photography books. He received the Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels Meritorious Service Award. The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2022 he received the Jimmy Seavey Health and Wellness award presented by the NVFC. and the Presidents Award from the International Society of Fire Service Instructors.

He was one of the founders of the Volunteer and Combination Officer Section (VCOS) and the National Fire Academy Alumni Association. He has contributed to several “ribbon reports” published by the VCOS. He was asked to be one of the editors for the original Lavender Ribbon Report published by the VCOS and NVFC in 2019. In 2021 he along with Brian McQueen spearheaded the update for the Lavender Ribbon Report. He is a principal author of the Yellow Ribbon Report and the updated updated Training Volunteers white paper published by the National Volunteer Fire Council and the Volunteer and Combination Officers Section.