Ray Davison

Keynote Speech given at the Southern Vermont Regional Fire School on April 23, 2005.

Service, Commitment, Leadership.

These qualities are found in great individuals who have reached the very height of their professions and who have made large contributions to their Communities, States and Country.

These are qualities also found in America and best exemplified through some of its past Presidents such as George Washington, with his extraordinary capacity for persistence, tenacity and determination, often in the face of what seemed impossible odds; Abraham Lincoln for his strong and unwavering principles in fighting for what he believed was right for the Union; Franklyn Delano Roosevelt in overcoming severe personal challenges and in serving publicly for so long and so well; and in Ronald Reagan who became President at a time when America was under pressure and who reminded everyone of how great and inspiring America was and could be.

As well, these qualities are found in the Fire Service, with its tradition of solidarity, comradeship and service, and in the Vermont Fire Service, with its spirit of volunteerism, commitment and dedication.

And these qualities are especially found in Ray Davison.

Let us look, for a moment, at Ray's achievements: 35 years as a teacher, guidance counselor and public school administrator in four Vermont school districts; 18 years working for the Brown McClay Funeral Hones; 44 years as 1st Deputy Chief of the Vergennes Fire Department; and several years as owner of the R.E. Davison Co., a fire/rescue equipment sales business.

On top of that Ray served the State of Vermont Fire Service Training Council as a State Fire Training Instructor and taught fire classes throughout the State, New England, and Canada. He was also a life member of the department, the Addison County Firefighter's Association and the Vermont State Firefighter's Association.

This makes for an astonishing and extraordinary life; one that was lived with a great deal of kindness, courtesy and selflessness. As a matter of fact if you talk of Ray to anyone, the mention of his name will immediately give way to a positive and enthusiastic response.

This is what heroes are made of and why they are so loved. Because of the sense of dedication, devotion and inspiration they bring out in others.

And this is why Ray Davison is a hero to us.

In an information-driven and computed-dominated age and in a time of job-outsourcing and worker-disaffection, no one understood better than Ray the need for information sharing and training opportunities. He knew that legal, technological and social challenges were facing us and that men and women with a strong sense of service, commitment and leadership would be needed to meet them.

Such men and women were found in the great Roman Antonine Period, in the British Industrial Revolution, and will now be needed in the United States of America.

And this is even more true in this post-September 11 era where several forces are at play to try and undermine our enthusiasm and confidence and limit our freedom, creativity and way of life.

In a time like this strong, fearless and selfless heroes will be needed to come forward and help us keep America free, safe and sound. To do that those heroes will have to exemplify those qualities of Service, Commitment and Leadership Ray demonstrated so magnificently throughout his life.

That is why Bill Timmons and I have decided to write a book about his life and because we feel, so keenly and deeply, the loss of every American life in Afghanistan, Irak and other parts of the world.

You have no idea how grateful Bill and I are to be able to come to Vermont and to be received with such kindness, openness and friendliness.

We love the Fire Service. We love the State of Vermont. We love the United States. And we felt that it would only be just and equitable, after all the kindlinesses and courtesies we have been shown, that we should write a book about a man who, because of his unparalleled integrity and selfless devotion to others, has become a hero to us.

We are writing it because we feel that his life can serve as an example to others who might want to join the Fire Service and serve and, beyond that, to still others who might simply want to aim for a life of excellence and dedication in whatever work they choose.

We are also writing it because we feel that the story of Ray far outstrips the boundaries of the Fire Service, the State of Vermont, and America, even. We feel that, in its unparalleled excellence and spiritual magnitude, it belongs in the public domain and to the world at large.

And that is why, finally, we decided to write it, because, in the final analysis, and much to his credit, honor and glory, the story of Ray Davison is the story of us all.

Thank you.