Bill Text: PA SR163 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Honoring the life of former State Fire Commissioner and former Harrisburg Fire Chief Charles A. "Chet" Henry, who died on June 25, 2011.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 30)

Status: (Passed) 2011-06-30 - Introduced and adopted [SR163 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2011-SR163-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 1467
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE RESOLUTION
No. 163 Session of2011
INTRODUCED BY WAUGH, BROWNE, ALLOWAY, ARGALL, BAKER, BRUBAKER, CORMAN, EARLL, EICHELBERGER, ERICKSON, FOLMER, GORDNER, GREENLEAF, McILHINNEY, MENSCH, ORIE, PICCOLA, PILEGGI, PIPPY, RAFFERTY, ROBBINS, SCARNATI, SMUCKER, TOMLINSON, VANCE, VOGEL, WARD, D. WHITE, M. WHITE AND YAW, JUNE 30, 2011
INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED, JUNE 30, 2011
A RESOLUTION
Honoring the life of former State Fire Commissioner and former
Harrisburg Fire Chief Charles A. "Chet" Henry, who died on
June 25, 2011.
WHEREAS, Charles A. "Chet" Henry, former Fire Chief of the
City of Harrisburg, died on June 25, 2011; and
WHEREAS, Chief Henry started what would be a stellar career with
the Harrisburg Fire Department in 1963, rising through the ranks
to become battalion chief, assistant chief and training officer
and, ultimately, chief; and
WHEREAS, During those years, he instituted the department's
first formal firefighter training program and pioneered the use
of fire safety programs in schools, hospitals and nursing homes
throughout Harrisburg, Dauphin County and beyond; and
WHEREAS, Chief Henry honed his skills by attending courses at
the United States Fire Academy, the Philadelphia Fire Academy
and the Pittsburgh Fire Academy; and
WHEREAS, His expertise was called upon when he served on the
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Governor's Commission on Fire Safety and as a fire instructor
for the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy; and
WHEREAS, In 1977, then-Governor Milton J. Shapp appointed him
to serve as the Commonwealth's first State Fire Commissioner,
where he worked tirelessly visiting fire departments and
firefighter associations across Pennsylvania, forging alliances
with business, insurance and educational institutions, and
acting as a catalyst for all fire-related entities in this
Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, His carefully cultivated relationships with the
United States Fire Administration and the National Fire Academy
led to valuable grant awards to Pennsylvania in the fields of
master planning, organizational design, fire prevention
education and arson awareness; and
WHEREAS, His work on the State level was recognized
nationally, most notably when he was asked to be the keynote
speaker at a Fallen Firefighter ceremony at the National Fire
Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and when he spoke from the same
church pulpit in Philadelphia as did Benjamin Franklin, father
of the nation's first fire company; and
WHEREAS, Impressed with Mr. Henry's vision, vitality and
leadership, then-Governor Dick Thornburgh created the Office of
Fire Safety Services within the Pennsylvania Emergency
Management Agency (PEMA) and appointed Mr. Henry to oversee it;
and
WHEREAS, Mr. Henry also supervised the State Fire Academy,
located in Lewistown, which became nationally authorized to
provide firefighter certification programs, and the Volunteer
Loan Assistance Program, to which he introduced computer
technology, improved procedures and increased staffing; and
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WHEREAS, When he retired in 1989, after serving with
distinction under three governors, Pennsylvania's fire deaths
had dropped by 20%, and many of the programs he implemented are
still being used today; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Henry served as one of the first directors of
the United States Fire Institute in Washington, DC, was a
director of the International Association of Fire Service
Instructors, was a member of the State Firefighters' Association
and the Dauphin County Firemen's Association and was a life
member of the Pennsylvania Pump Primers Association; and
WHEREAS, In 2003, he received the Marty Sacks Award and later
served as a director and board member of the Marty Sacks
Foundation, which provides grants to worthy applicants under the
auspices of the Foundation for Enhancing Communities; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Henry was born on June 13, 1927, in Harrisburg,
grew up in the Shipoke neighborhood, and attended Harrisburg
city schools, playing sports and forging friendships that lasted
for the rest of his life; and
WHEREAS, He served two separate tours in the United States
Navy during World War II and afterward into the late 1940's and
then was employed by Bethlehem Steel before joining the
Harrisburg City Fire Department; and
WHEREAS, He was predeceased by his first wife, Marilyn
Troxell Henry, three sisters and one brother, and is survived by
his wife Sandra Smith Cowan Henry, brother Joseph, sisters
Virginia Rollins and Dorothy Morris, and nieces and nephews; and
WHEREAS, A memorial service will be held for him beginning at
10 a.m. on July 9, 2011, at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Harrisburg;
and
WHEREAS, Charles A. "Chet" Henry served his nation,
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Commonwealth and city with courage and distinction; therefore be
it
RESOLVED, That the Senate honor the life of former State Fire
Commissioner and former Harrisburg Fire Chief Charles A. "Chet"
Henry, who died on June 25, 2011.
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