New Killbuck Twp. Fire Chief Clemens honors Kashuba
This bench, purchased in tandem by the Killbuck Township Fire Department and the Village of Killbuck, will rest outside the administration building in Killbuck to serve as a reminder of what Scott Kashuba meant to the community.
For Derwin Clemens, the idea of becoming a fire chief has always been in the back of his mind.
However, he would have much preferred to assume the role of fire chief under very different circumstances.
Clemens has been named the Killbuck Township fire chief after the unfortunate passing of former Fire Chief Scott Kashuba in an automobile accident this past summer, and now Clemens’ focus is twofold, one being the leading of the Killbuck Township Fire Department to the best of his ability and the other being keeping alive the honorable memory of a beloved fire chief by continuing the great work Kashuba had done as chief.
Clemens took over the role Jan. 1 and said the impact Kashuba made during his time serving as the fire chief was immeasurable. He hopes he can continue that legacy and keep the department humming as it had been.
“Scott is still a very integral part of the department,” Clemens said. “He had the department headed in a very good direction, and I’m hoping to simply continue to follow his lead and keep things rolling along. He had this ability to touch the lives of people everywhere and was an integral part of our community here in Killbuck in so many ways that extended well beyond his service as fire chief.”
In memory of Kashuba, the department joined the Village of Killbuck in purchasing a bench with “In memory of Scott Kashuba” inscribed on it that will reside outside the village’s administration building.
The bench also has the United States Army military emblem and the Killbuck fire department emblem, honoring his service to both groups.
“Scott is and always will be a huge part of this department,” Clemens said.
In addition to the bench, the department retired Kashuba’s fire department No. 430, which is the number Kashuba had when he entered the departments as a firefighter prior to becoming chief. Thus, nobody can ever wear that number again.
However, there is one caveat.
“We did allow for one exception, and that is if any of his family should ever want to wear that number to honor Scott, they can,” Clemens said.
At the time Kashuba’s son Andrew Kashuba is serving in the department, so if he would choose to don that number, they would gladly allow that.
As for Clemens, he has been serving on the Killbuck Fire Department for about five years, although he has tons of experience in fire service for a quarter century. As part of that experience, he served as a firefighter in Granville for a dozen year prior to venturing to Holmes County.
“Becoming a fire chief was always on my radar at some point,” Clemens said. “I was fortunate enough to receive a lot of leadership and officer-type classes early on in my career to help prepare me for that time when it finally came, so I was definitely preparing myself for it, but I sure didn’t want it to come about in the way it did.”
Clemens said he is currently working on creating a five- and 10-year plan for the department and is setting some goals moving forward. Clemens, who also is heavily invested in the Boy Scouts of America program (as was Kashuba), is being prepared, but he said his former chief has laid excellent groundwork for moving forward.
“Basically, right now it’s keeping up with everything Scott had started,” Clemens said.
He said one of his goals is to bring in new officers and leaders and train them to tackle some leadership roles in the department.
Clemens said for now the important thing is making sure Kashuba’s memory and work ethic live on in a fire department that meant so much to their former leader.