Twenty-eight years of experience left the Oxford Fire Department last week when Randy Schuler retired.
‘I hung it up,? said the 1984 Oxford High School graduate.
Schuler had been a paid-on-call firefighter and emergency medical technician since 1987. Over the years, he worked his way up the ladder to become a lieutenant.
‘I love to help people any chance I get,? he said. ‘I’ve loved being able to give back to the community that I grew up in. I’ve never lived anywhere else in my life. I’m a lifer in Oxford, born and raised.?
Fire Chief Pete Scholz praised Schuler’s expertise in areas such as operating the trucks and demolishing structures. His ‘good-hearted? nature will be missed as well.
‘He always loved to talk to everybody,? he said. ‘He got along with everybody really well.?
Joining the fire department is something Schuler never pictured himself doing.
‘It really wasn’t like a lifelong dream or anything to be a fireman. It really wasn’t,? he said.
It just kind of happened.
Years ago, he lived in an apartment in downtown Oxford near where the fire station used to be located behind the village office.
‘They kept waking me up every night going around the corner with their sirens going,? Schuler said.
One day, out of curiosity, he wandered over to the station to check things out. He talked to both the chief and assistant chief, learned the department was hiring and decided to fill out an application.
‘The rest was history,? Schuler said. ‘Honestly, that was how it started.?
It turned out to be a happy accident as firefighting became a passion.
‘I fell in love with it,? he said. ‘Once it’s in your blood, it doesn’t go away.?
Even though he just retired last week, Schuler admitted, ‘I miss it already.?
He credits being a firefighter with helping him mature and become the man he is today. ‘It made me grow up a lot,? he explained. ‘It taught me a lot. It does teach you a lot of responsibility.?
When he first joined at age 21, Schuler said he was in the chief’s office ‘once a week for something I did wrong.?
But after awhile, that changed.
‘In probably the last 20 years, I don’t think I’ve ever been in trouble,? Schuler said. ‘It made me a better man, for sure.?
The decision to retire after nearly three decades of service wasn’t an easy one. Schuler put a lot of thought into it.
‘It took me probably a solid two months to make the decision,? he said.
For him, it all boiled down to time. He just didn’t have enough of it anymore.
Schuler has ‘a lot more responsibility? at his full-time job since he became a working foreman for the Adamo Group, a Detroit-based demolition company.
Back when he was an equipment operator, the demands on his time were much less.
‘I wrecked a building and I went home at night,? Schuler said
Now, he’s got phone calls to make, scheduling to do and paperwork to keep up with. A typical work day involves him leaving around 5 a.m. and getting home around 7 p.m.
That type of schedule makes it tough to respond to fires, vehicular accidents and medical emergencies at the drop of a hat.
Paid-on-call staff are required to spend a minimum of 18 hours per month engaging in training and responding to calls.
Schuler admitted 18 hours per month ‘doesn’t sound like a lot,? but when a person is trying to juggle their professional and personal lives, it’s a difficult requirement to meet.
‘It sounds really easy till you try doing it,? he said. ‘If you didn’t do anything else (in your life), 18 hours would be really easy to do, but you’d have no life.?
It was also getting difficult for him to keep up with the increasing call volume.
As Oxford continues to grow, so does the number of calls the fire department receives. For example, the department went from 634 calls in 1994 to 2,072 calls last year.
Schuler used to wonder if he’d be awakened by a call during the night. Now, it’s to the point where a firefighter is wondering how many times he will be awakened that night. ‘It just became too much,? he said.
Schuler hopes his explanation of why he retired doesn’t deter anyone from signing up to be a paid-on-call firefighter.
He just wants potential applicants to understand and appreciate the level of dedication the job takes.
Deciding to join the fire department isn’t something to take lightly, but in the end, he believes it’s worth it because there’s nothing like being able ‘to help somebody in a bad situation.?
‘It’s a rewarding feeling,? Schuler said. ‘I enjoyed it.?