MSFCA 2023 Elections

Presidential Candidates

• Eric Bullen, Fire Chief, Albertville Fire Department
• Rodger Coppa, Fire Chief, Plymouth Fire Department

Ballots will be sent electronically to all MSFCA active voting members in July. Voting will close August 11th. If you have any questions or issues with voting, contact the MSFCA office at 800-743-0911 or [email protected]. 

Eric Bullen, Fire Chief, Albertville Fire Department

Background:

My public safety career began in 1995, when I became a Police Officer for the City of Minneapolis.

In 2002, I moved to the City of St. Michael and joined the St. Michael Fire Department, where I was fortunate to serve in the following roles over my 19-year career: Paid-on-Call Firefighter, Lieutenant, Captain, and Relief Association Secretary.

In 2006, I moved to the City of Albertville and joined the Albertville Fire Department, and served in the following roles: Paid-on-Call Firefighter and Lieutenant.

I was fortunate to be able to serve both Communities from 2006 until 2021, when I retired from the St. Michael Fire Department.

In 2015, after a combined public safety service time of 42-years, and a background in both the Fire Service and Law Enforcement, I was selected as the first full-time Fire Chief in the history of the Albertville Fire Department, a moment in time that is easily the proudest of my career. 

The Albertville Fire Department is a combination Fire Department with one full-time Fire Chief and up to 33 Paid-on-Call Firefighters. We respond to 550 calls for service per year and cover the City of Albertville and half of the City of Otsego, serving over 20,000 people across 30-square miles.

Like most of you, I am always looking at innovative ideas to increase our ability to tackle budgeting, fund-raising, recruitment, retention, Relief Association benefit level increases, and other issues common to almost every Minnesota Fire Department.

One of the first “words of advice” that I received, as a Fire Chief, from a trusted mentor was that I needed join the MSFCA, and become an active member. The decision to follow through on both of those items, has been truly transformational in my career.

As a member of the MSFCA I have been fortunate to serve in the following positions:

• Interim Vice-President (March 2023 to Present)
  • Legislative Liaison (February 2023 to Present)
• Executive Committee (July 2022 to March 2023)
• Board of Directors – Region 8 Director (2019 to March 2023)
• Board of Directors – Region 8 Alternate (2018 to 2019)

Through these roles, I have been able to represent the MSFCA Membership as:

• Chair – Board Composition and Regional Boundaries Working Group (2022)
• Liaison – Volunteer Fire Relief Association Working Group (2019 to Present)
• Liaison – Minnesota Propane Education Promotion and Safety Council (2016 to Present)

As a Region Director I have been on-site, assisting to coordinate Regional and Statewide resources, at the Northern Metals Recycling Facility fire in Becker and during the civil unrest events in Brooklyn Center. I have also been very active representing the interests of our Association through serving on working groups, meeting with our National, State, and County elected officials, and working on collaborative partnerships with the MN Department of Public Safety, the MN State Fire Marshal Division, and other Statewide stakeholders.

Leadership Roles:

I have been fortunate to have been able to hold leadership roles in two other Minnesota Fire Service organizations.

Over the last 6-years I have served as three Officer roles of the Metro Chief Fire Officers Association:

• President (2022 to Present)
• Vice-President (2020 / 2021)
• Secretary / Treasurer (2018 / 2019)

I have also served two, one-year, terms as an Officer of the Wright County Fire Chiefs Association:

• President (2020)
• Secretary (2019)

As an active member of the MSFCA, I have seen, first hand, how our Association reflects and represents all of its members, and fulfills its Mission Statement, in our initiatives around the State. 

I know that the MSFCA is filled with driven, innovative, members; who represent the broad Fire Service across the State with commitment, dedication, and professionalism. I believe that through a collaborative effort we can continue to build on the many successes of the last few years and prepare ourselves to tackle the new issues on the horizon.

 I look forward to building unanimous consensus with our Executive Committee, Board of Directors, Committee members, and External Appointees to address our continuing Statewide initiatives.

 It would be my honor, and privilege, to serve as the President of the MSFCA for the next two-years. If elected, I promise to draw on those same values of commitment, dedication, and professionalism, to further the MSFCA initiatives for all of its members and the Communities we serve.

Rodger Coppa, Fire Chief, Plymouth Fire Department

My name is Rodger Coppa, and I would like to ask for your support as I run for president of our great association. I am honored and privileged to have had 28 years in public safety. I believe my background, experience, and education position me to be an effective leader and hope you allow me to serve you.

• I received my initial firefighting certifications in 1995 and have worked for three departments.
• I spent 15 years as a paid-on-call firefighter with Brooklyn Park, as a firefighter, district chief, and retiring as deputy chief.
• I served 12 years as a career firefighter with St. Louis Park, as a firefighter, Lieutenant, and Assistant Chief-Training.
• I have had the privilege to serve the last eight years as the chief for the Plymouth Fire Department. We have built a successful combination department, adding career shift personnel to the department to support the paid-on-call.
• I have been a nationally registered paramedic since 1996 and spent time working 911 EMS response for Monticello-Big Lake Ambulance, North Memorial Ambulance and Hennepin County Ambulance before becoming a career firefighter. After leaving the ambulance service, I had the incredible opportunity to be a tactical medic with St. Louis Park SWAT for 10 years.
• I have been a rescue specialist on MNTF-1 since 2006 and also currently represent eight sponsoring agencies as a task force board member.
• I am certified as a Minnesota Emergency Manager and a member of Minnesota’s Type 3 All-hazard Incident Management Team. I have had multiple in-state deployments to include a grain elevator explosion, wildland fires, flooding, State EOC support during COVID and a State/Federal response for avian flu. I have also had the honor to assist on a Florida Keys deployment for Hurricane Irma.
• I sit on the MSFCA Emergency Management Committee as well as the Conference Committee. I am also a FAST Chief with many deployments to help with flooding and funerals across the state. I have assisted in advocating for fire centric legislation at the State Capital and serve as the MSFCA Region 11 Alternate Representative.
• I am the current president of the Hennepin Fire Chiefs Association.
• I am the Fire Marshal for the City of Plymouth and work diligently to ensure the community is protected through progressive plan review, proactive commercial inspections and engaging public education.
• I have a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Minnesota, Morris, a Public Safety Administration certificate from Hamline University and a Paramedic certificate from the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

After an incredible career of diverse experiences and opportunities, I find myself in the position to utilize my leadership skills to benefit our large and diverse association. I truly understand that this association exists for the benefit of all its members. This is a statewide association, and its leadership needs to understand and support that. Regional directors need to ensure that those they represent have their interests heard at the board level and the association’s priorities must align with its membership. The strength of this association rests with its membership, not with its leadership; we just have the honor of representing you.

Our association members must continue to collaborate with other stakeholders within the state to:

• Advocate for pension equity and fairness.
• Ensure quality leadership training and conferences are available to our members.
• Address recruitment and retention concerns across the state and across all staff types. There are differences between rural concerns and metro concerns, and we need to ensure both are addressed.
• Support statewide firefighter safety and resiliency initiatives.
• Maintain positive relationships with the other state fire associations (MSFDA, FMAM, MN-IAAI, MPFF, and State Fire Marshal) and work collaboratively to advance issues important to Minnesota fire departments.

I humbly ask for your support and hope that you allow me to be the next President of the Minnesota State Fire Chiefs Association.

I applaud your selfless dedication and commitment to the Minnesota fire service and thank you for your membership in this great organization.