I have had the privilege of serving with Les Schneiter in the Addy Volunteer Fire department over the past 14 years. I have never worked with anyone who has dedicated themselves as deeply to their community. For all 43 years of his adult life he has put others first, he has remained calm in the face of traumatic situations, and always treated his patients and fire victims with respect and dignity. He has been willing to drop everything he is doing at a moment’s notice and go to the aid of people in need regardless of the time of night, bad weather, or being in the middle of work.
For 24 years he has led the department as its Chief. He retired the end of September from the department and will leave a big void in the force. It is hard for me to imagine what it will be like to go to calls without him there. Most of the horrible, and traumatic things I have witnessed in my life have been in situations where Les was in charge; when I have responded to medical calls near my residence in Summit Valley he was the one person I could always count on to quickly get there and back me up until the ambulance got to the scene. I will deeply miss him, and I know many others will as well. If you see him around town, please thank him for his service.
Andrew Engell
Addy, WA
