Midway Names 'Firefighter of the Year'

For almost 40 years, Midway Volunteer Fire Co. in Buckingham has recognized a member of its organization for his or her accomplishments within the fire company, as well as their commitment to serving the community.

This year’s recipient is Curt Kuder, who has been selected as “Firefighter of the Year.”

A member since 1994, Kuder serves the fire company as a lieutenant, is a member of the honor guard and has been in charge of a project to modernize Midway’s radios and pagers to bring them in line with a countywide upgrade initiative.

Members of the fire company praised Kuder for his dedication to his continued training and that of his fellow firefighters.

On his member-voted accolades, Kuder said he was “stunned and honored to have my name on a list with 30-plus other members of the fire department, some of which were my mentors.”

They also praised his guidance and team-building skills.

“He’s a leader,” said Midway Fire Chief Hugh Hager. “He’s encouraged all these guys to continue their education – not only in fire service but college as well.”

In fact Kuder, who works for Johnson & Johnson in Spring House in drug discovery and development, returned to fire school this past spring so he could brush up on his fire and rescue skills as well as assist newer members.

“Those students knew that they had him to fall back on to learn – not only what was being taught in class but his experience, too,” explained fire company president Dave Hathaway.

Hathaway also cited Kuder’s unique ability to size up all the different personalities, backgrounds and skills of the 65 members that make up Midway and rout them to the appropriate tasks in the short period of time when fire calls come in.

Some members excel at driving the 50,000-pound engines to calls. Others are knowledgeable in auto mechanics or metal fabrication – skills that may come in handy when firefighters respond to the scene of an accident and may need to know how best to disassemble the vehicle to extricate victims.

“Curt’s really good at recognizing the strengths and weaknesses of the team, and who does the best at various jobs.

That, plus he “never really says ‘no’ to a challenge,” Hathaway added.

Hager agreed.

“I know if Curt volunteers for something, it’ll get done.”

While fighting fires certainly gets the most attention of a volunteer firefighter, some parts of the job are equally important but may not get as much public attention.

As a member of Midway’s nationally recognized honor guard, Kuder sometimes travels to neighboring departments to help with funeral protocol when a firefighter is laid to rest – everything from the procession itself to standing watch at the casket.

Kuder, along with members of other fire service and emergency medical service organizations from the Central Bucks area, will be honored at the annual Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce and Burpee Foundation awards dinner in October.