It's Not Your Everyday Call

Frank Leeb is a Deputy Assistant Chief in the Fire Department of New York (FDNY). He currently serves as the acting chief of training. Frank also is the current chair of the FDNY’s Contamination Reduction Workgroup, a position he has held since its inception in 2017. Frank has been a member of the FDNY since 1992. Frank has also been a member of the East Farmingdale Fire Department since 1983 (Long Island NY). He holds a BS degree in Fire Service Administration from SUNY and a Master’s degree in Security Studies from the Naval Postgraduate School, Center for Homeland Defense and Security (CHDS). He is a principal on the NFPA Technical Committees 420, 1585, and 1710. Recently, Frank served as a fire service technical panel member for the UL Study of Coordinated Fire Attack Utilizing Acquired Structures. He also recently delivered the 2022 Firehouse Expos keynote address and was a presenter at the U.S. Fire Administrator Summit on Fire Prevention and Control.

Chief Wilhelm began his career in public safety in 1982 as a junior volunteer firefighter. He worked as a dispatcher, police officer and detective for nearly a decade and then spent 12 years in the corporate world, working in management for two Fortune 50 companies and building a successful company of his own, before returning to a full-time public safety career in 2010 as Chief of the Swissvale Fire Department.

As Fire Chief, he successfully consolidated a career and volunteer department; implemented training standards; increased services, replaced all equipment and apparatus to current standards and facilitated cooperation between regional departments. He implemented a comprehensive Code Enforcement and Community Risk Reduction program that has reduced working structure fires by more than 75%; reduced a previously upward trend in fire fatalities, which also resulted in significantly increased property values (as well as tax revenue) in his community. These efforts resulted in an improvement in the community’s ISO-PPC rating from a Class 6 to a Class 2. He also successfully wrote and received 34 grants totaling more than $2.6 million.

Chief Wilhelm also served as the Borough Manager from 2014 thru 2020, inheriting a municipal government near fiscal insolvency. He lead a change in culture and a paradigm shift within the local government’s administration and operations. Without raising taxes and increasing revenues by providing contracted services to other municipalities; successfully obtaining and leveraging more than $5 million in grant funding; negotiating and implementing other cost saving measures, he increased services and capital investment while ending each year with a surplus. In 2020, after successfully turning things around, Chief Wilhelm stepped down from the Manager position to focus more time with his family and the fire department.

Chief Wilhelm has received various commendations for his service and accomplishments, including the “Code Official of the Year Award” in 2015 from the Commonwealth Building Officials and the “Distinguished Service Award” in 2019 from the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs.

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.