George F. Esbensen Eden Prairie Fire Department       14800 Scenic Heights Road Eden Prairie, MN  55344 952-949-8336 gesbensen@edenprairie.org   Great Lakes Division Website

The Great Lakes Division

Our Division represents the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. The board of directors is comprised of a State Representative from each of the six states who are elected to three year terms. The "Executive Officers" are elected by the membership at large and includes the president and vice president who serve two year terms. There has been a long-standing "handshake agreement" that the vice president is elected from each state on a rotational basis to ensure that one state does not dominate the board on a long term basis. There is also an understanding among the members that normal progression is the vice president is elected to the position of president upon completion his term.

Our International Director - the person who represents our Division on the International Board - is elected to a three year term as is our Secretary/Treasurer. Both of these positions are elected from the membership at large.

Mission Statement

We are a division of the International Association of Fire Chiefs and therefore we operate under the following IAFC Mission Statement:

Our Mission: To provide leadership to career and volunteer chiefs, chief fire officers and managers of Emergency Services Organizations throughout the international community through vision, information, education, services and representation to enhance their professionalism and capabilities.

Click to View Past Reports
Great Lakes Division Website

Minnesota Representative to the Great Lakes Division Report

International Association of Fire Chiefs
Great Lakes Division Report

The Board of Directors of the Great Lakes Division met on Wednesday August 24th in Atlanta in conjunction with Fire Rescue International. In addition, the Division held its annual membership meeting the following day.

Board of Directors Meeting:
Secretary/Treasurer Roamer reported the division finances were in good shape with year to date revenue up about $4,500 and expenses down approximately $5,500.  Our total division membership has fallen to 1,692 (down about 8%).  The Minnesota membership was down only one member.

President Nyle Zikmund gave his final Presidents report as his two year term expires at the annual meeting.  Chief Zikmund has served the board for the last four years as VP and President.  I would like to publically thank him for bringing the division to a new level of service to the membership and greater accountability for the board.

International Director Ken Taylor from Ohio gave a report on the latest happenings within the IAFC.  Chief Taylor reported that the National Volunteer Fire Council in conjunction with the Safety/Health/ and Survival Section has developed a Vulnerability Assessment Tool that will be easy to use for any size fire department to assess their communities vulnerabilities and develop workable plans to address any shortcomings.  Look for this on the IAFC website soon.  Other areas that the IAFC has been involved in include: 

• Expansion of Company Officer Involvement in the IAFC
• The Division Task Force Report
• Vision 20/20 Program
• Medical Evaluation Task Force 

Again check the website or contact me directly for more information.  Finally Chief Taylor reported that Chief Rich Corizo of the Missouri Valley Division has been appointed as Secretary/treasurer of the IAFC to fill the remaining term of Chief Bill Metcalf who will become the next 2nd Vice president of the IAFC. 

This will be Chief Ken Taylors last meeting as a member of the GLD Board as he is stepping down as our International Director.  Chief Taylor has provided many years of service to the GLD and we wish him the best as he leaves the Board.

Vice president Jim Peterson out of Michigan reviewed the Division’s Strategic Plan and gave the Board an update on what we have accomplished.

Chief Tim Schabbel from Indiana updated the Board on the CTC in a Box Program.  The GLD Board authorized the purchase of the equipment necessary to provide the ability to host a “Command Training Center” in your own department.  This initiative goes hand in hand with the Blue Card Program.  The division spent approximately $10,000 for the required equipment and it can be requested for use by any member of the GLD.  The only requirements are that the user pays for shipping and insurance and hires qualified instructors to run the training.  We expect to have all of the details and procedure for using this equipment worked out in the next few months.

The Board also received an update on the State Executive Directors Group that was created last year.  This was another Board initiative that is used to connect the Executive Directors of the State Chiefs Association together in monthly conference calls to exchange information and learn new ideas.  So far the group has made a lot of progress and we hope it will continue to have value to our organizations.

Finally, the Board discussed the proposed By-Law changes to allow the GLD Board to pursue hiring an Executive Director.  In addition, some time was spent developing and RFP for publication if the proposed changes were approved.

Annual Membership Meeting:
The annual membership meeting was held on Thursday August 25th in Atlanta.  The first official item of business was the proposed Constitution and By-Laws changes being forwarded by the Board of Directors.  I was tasked with giving the report to the membership and answering any questions.  The changes were approved by the membership.  These changes give the Board of Directors the authority to search out and hire and Executive Director for the division.  I would anticipate that the process may take 6 months or more.

Several of the Officer positions within the division were up for election.  Chief Scott Skeldon of Ohio gave the Nominations Committee report and the elections were held.  There were a total of four offices up for election but we only had one contested race.  The results of the elections are as follows:

            President – Chief Jim Peterson of Michigan
            Vice President – Chief Jim Baus of Wisconsin
            Secretary/Treasurer – Chief Dean Holland of Michigan
            IAFC Director – Chief Nyle Zikmund of MN

Congratulations to all of the newly elected officers. 

I look forward to seeing and talking to most of you at this year’s MSFCA Conference in beautiful St. Cloud.  We invite all of the Great Lakes Division members to join us for the GLD Luncheon on Thursday.  I will be available throughout the conference to discuss the Great Lakes Division with anyone.  See you in St. Cloud.