Mid-Columbia Fire & Rescue Chief set to retire in December. Bob Palmer started with The Dalles Fire Department in 1980 and was an integral player in merging two districts into the fire service we have today that serves 120 square miles and takes some 3,500 calls for help annually.

Edward Hastings, 96, was a sophomore at The Dalles High School when he got the call to be a volunteer firefighter. He slept in the fire hall and jumped from the third story of the US National Bank into a safety net held by other volunteers. He was also one of the first to walk the halls of the current-day TDHS after it opened in 1942.