Running for OFD Commissioner

To the Editor:

My name is Tommy McDermott, and I am running for the elected position of fire commissioner in the Oceanside Fire District.

I am a lifelong Oceanside resident with very strong ties to our community. I graduated from Oceanside High School and joined the Oceanside Fire Department in 1980. During my 30 years of service, I have held the elected offices of lieutenant and captain on the company level, and in 2003 the members of the department elected me chief, culminating in 2007 as chief of the department. My wife and I continue to reside in Oceanside, where we have raised our three children. I am keenly aware of the current economy and the financial hardships that many of our residents, and those of our surrounding communities, are experiencing. My commitment to our residents is to be fiscally prudent while still providing the most effective and most efficient fire protection for residents of the Oceanside Fire District.

As an active firefighter and chief of the department, I served on many committees and was able to lend insight and innovation when a federal grant was applied for and obtained that upgraded the self-contained breathing apparatuses used by our firefighters. I have worked on committees that have brought a new tower ladder truck to our community, and I am currently involved in bringing a new aerial ladder to replace the 20-year-old apparatus that is in service, saving the residents the price of costly repairs for outdated equipment.

I am currently an active New York City police officer, and the experience that I have garnered in the emergency service field will benefit the community should I be privileged to serve by being elected to the position of fire commissioner. I have the knowledge, the commitment and the fiscal responsibility that are needed to fulfill the obligations of this position and serve the community during these tenuous economic times. These attributes, along with my commitment to the firefighter’s of Oceanside, are what I will bring to the position of Oceanside fire commissioner.

Tommy McDermott

Oceanside