Sifting through his collection of photos spanning over four decades in the Colwood Fire Service, a reflective Greg Chow sums up his time fighting fires and saving lives as B次元官网网址榝ulfillingB次元官网网址�.

And with 42 years of service under his belt, fulfilled he should be, as Chow can proudly call himself the longest-serving firefighter in ColwoodB次元官网网址檚 history. 

B次元官网网址淚t really hasn't sunk in," he said. B次元官网网址淚'm glad I spent all my time in one department. That's not usually heard of - and to live in the community and help, thatB次元官网网址檚 a great feeling; it goes a long way.B次元官网网址�

Chow first considered retiring from the fire service in February, but when he realized he was months away from writing himself into the Colwood history books, he decided it was something worth sticking around for.

B次元官网网址淚 looked at it and I thought, 'Okay, records are meant to be broken,'B次元官网网址� says Chow about the former record-holding firefighter, Alan Emery, whose length of service to Colwood he estimates at 41 years and B次元官网网址渟o many monthsB次元官网网址�.

ChowB次元官网网址檚 firefighting career first began in the summer of 1982 as a volunteer, before he made the move to a career-firefighter in February 2000. He estimates he has attended over 5,000 calls, but itB次元官网网址檚 two incidents that stick out B次元官网网址渂ig timeB次元官网网址� for him. 

Chow vividly remembers a warehouse fire in September 1987 and battling to protect a propane station on Jacklin Road from the blaze.

B次元官网网址淚t was called the Van Isle fire,B次元官网网址� said Chow.

The other, in June 2010, was a fire at the Colwood Plaza at 1913 Sooke Rd.

B次元官网网址淲e came in at 4 a.m. and it was probably a 12 to 13 hour day,B次元官网网址� said Chow about the fire, described as one of the largest structure fires in the departmentB次元官网网址檚 history. B次元官网网址淭he fire was that big, we ended up having mutual aid from Langford and View Royal for many hours - lots of water was flowing.B次元官网网址�

Since joining the fire service as a fresh-faced teenager, Chow has seen many changes.

"Heck, I started before I even had met my wife, had kids, bought a house," he says. "And the fire service has definitely come a long way too. WeB次元官网网址檝e gotten bigger trucks, bigger engines, more pumping power, all that sort of stuff, but not just that, the training, the fires are getting different, everything is changing."

Firefighting in Colwood has been a Chow family tradition for many decades. His father Alec was a firefighter from 1952 to 1976, and ChowB次元官网网址檚 uncle, Frank, also gave 18 years to the service. A second uncle, Joe, also served six years, whilst a third uncle, Harry Chow, sat on the fire departmentB次元官网网址檚 board of trustees.

B次元官网网址淲ith having my dad doing it, my uncles doing it, I always wanted to be a firefighter,B次元官网网址� said Chow. B次元官网网址淏ut secretly I wanted to be an astronaut when I first started.B次元官网网址�

Chow remembers his father storing the brush fire truck at their home, where he, his brother and their friends would use the apparatus as a play area. Upon reflection, he says this could be when his fascination with firefighting began.

B次元官网网址淲hen the fires hit back in those days they didn't have pagers,B次元官网网址� said Chow. B次元官网网址淭hey just relied on sirens in Colwood. So they would come down to my dadB次元官网网址檚 pig farm, grab the fire truck and go.B次元官网网址�

But unfortunately for the family, the tradition ends with Chow and his 42 years of service, as his two daughters Kira and Amy, have not been sparked by the firefighting flame.

That suits Chow just fine, as he hopes his retirement from the fire service will give him more quality time with his family; time that wonB次元官网网址檛 be at risk of interruption.

B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 been many lunches, dinners and birthdays where I'd get called out to an emergency,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淢y wife would always invite one of my friends, who had kids too around our daughtersB次元官网网址� age - he was always the back-up for the barbecue, because sure enough I would always get paged up for a call.B次元官网网址�

Always understanding of his sometimes unreliable commitment to flipping burgers for the family, Chow is also appreciative of his wife Toni's support, crediting her for helping him get through the darker moments of his career.

B次元官网网址淲e've gone through a lot together,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淢y past chief, John Cassidy, passed away of a heart attack in June 2021 - he was on shift when that happened. That was one of the lower points of my career. I had to step up and be acting chief for six to nine months. I could not have done it without my wifeB次元官网网址檚 support.B次元官网网址�

"Retiring is definitely the right decision for myself and my family," he adds.

About what he'll miss about the fire service, Chow lists the camaraderie and the 'family' at the fire house, but not the early starts, something he is slowly getting used to.

B次元官网网址淚 haven't slept in yet,B次元官网网址� said Chow, who is continuing employment in a sales role. B次元官网网址淚t's going to take me a while, if I ever get to that point that B次元官网网址� IB次元官网网址檓 still waking up at four or five in the morning. ItB次元官网网址檚 going to be a period of adjustment.B次元官网网址�

Whilst his time in the fire service is over, Chow says he would encourage anyone who has the drive and the desire to work for the fire service to chase their dreams.

B次元官网网址淚 would absolutely recommend being a firefighter,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淵ou sometimes go through bad stuff, but overall, down the way youB次元官网网址檒l think about how many people you actually save - even just holding their hand during a crisis, it can make a big difference.B次元官网网址�