Fire Chief Jim Sharp to Retire, Reflects on 40 Years of Service
Forty years ago, Jim Sharp walked into a fire station and never looked back.
The year was 1985, and the future fire chief was only a college dropout at the time, unaware of what he wanted to do with his life. His brother, eight years into his own firefighter career, encouraged him to apply.
“He said, ‘Volunteer. If you don’t like it, you don’t like it. If you like it, then you can go from there,’” recounted Chief Sharp.
It was there, as a volunteer for the University Place Fire Department, that the feeling he had been searching for finally clicked: the realization that this was where he was meant to be. He later worked as a dispatcher at Fire Comm before being hired full-time by University Place Fire in the summer of 1986.
“They said, ‘We’ll give you a job’ and I said, ‘For how long?’” said Sharp. “They said, ‘Forever’ and I said, ‘That’s fantastic. I’m good with that.’”
“Forever” turned into a forty-year career at West Pierce Fire & Rescue (WPFR), one that will come to a close at Tuesday night’s Board of Fire Commissioners meeting when Assistant Chief Ryan McGrady steps up as the next fire chief.
“I needed to leave at the right time to hand it off in a good spot,” said Sharp. “I think this is a good spot, and it’s good for me. I’m ready.”
Sharp is currently WPFR’s longest-tenured employee. He is also the only person to have worked for both the University Place and Lakewood fire departments before they merged to form WPFR in 2011.
He has no recollection of his “first fire” or his “first call.” The memories have blended over the years through his many roles as a dispatcher, volunteer, firefighter, paramedic, union officer, project manager, assistant chief, deputy chief, and, finally, fire chief.
Out of all the hats (or helmets) he wore, his favorite was when he was a Lieutenant, or what is now a Captain, in the front passenger seat of the fire engine.
“I loved it. I would’ve stayed there for the rest of my career and been perfectly content. That’s still my favorite job I ever had, but all kinds of opportunities came up,” he said.
Sharp switched over to the administrative side of the fire service, where he stayed for twenty years. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Fire Services Administration from Eastern Oregon University and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Washington.
“I never had time to look back,” he said. “I liked what I was doing. It was totally different, but I really liked it. I was never bored and wishing I was going back to do something different. I was just so busy and engaged with fun, exciting challenges.”
One of those challenges included stepping in as a project manager for the creation of South Sound 911, a 911 dispatch agency used today by 19 law enforcement and 18 fire/EMS agencies. Before that, agencies used a mix of in-house and outside dispatch centers and radio systems.
Shortly after, Sharp stepped in as fire chief in 2013, succeeding his brother, retired Fire Chief Ken Sharp – the same brother who had first urged him to join the fire service.
Over four decades, Sharp watched the fire service evolve. What was once primarily focused on fighting fires expanded to include medical care and transport, technical rescue, hazardous materials, mental health and social issues, investigations, preparedness, wildfires and more.
One of the biggest changes, he said, has been the department’s focus on health and wellness. WPFR continues to implement protections and support for the physical and mental impacts of the job.
“During my tenure as a fire chief, it has become prominent in the last ten, fifteen years. We’ve done a lot to change the way we do business,” Sharp said. “It became a very, very conscious effort to say: we need to change things.”
When discussing the growth and accomplishments WPFR has achieved, Sharp gives all the credit to the “talented” employees and the “supportive community.”
“It’s been awesome. It’s been great being able to work here,” he said. “I didn’t do much. I’ve been a caretaker. It was good when I got here, I just had to take care of it, and it’s going to be good when I hand it off.”
Sharp joked that he’s spent “a lifetime going nowhere.” He grew up and graduated from high school in University Place, built his career serving the same community, and his wife, children and grandchildren all live within the district. It’s also where he plans to spend his retirement.
“I’ve been in this community forever. Forty years is one thing, but getting the opportunity to do it in the community you grew up in, that’s pretty rare,” said Sharp. “I’m pretty lucky to do that.”