Obituary of David "Todd" Gustavson

It is with heavy hearts that the family of David “Todd” Gustavson announce his sudden passing on April 4, 2015 at the age of 53. Todd was born and raised in Lloydminster. He dedicated his life to the Lloydminster Fire Department from the age of 16 and served his community until his passing. Todd is survived by his loving “Honney,” Maureen, and their son Calem. Todd leaves behind his family and many friends. He will be deeply mourned and fondly remembered by his extended family, the Lloydminster Fire Department. Throughout his 37 years of service, Chief touched many lives in the community through countless different ways. Funeral services were held on April 10, 2015. Following the celebration of life, a full procession of uniformed personnel from the Lloydminster Fire Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and numerous other service men and women from neighbouring provinces showed their respect with a Motorcade and Foot March past Fire Station No.1 to honour Todd. A Regimental Service was held at the Lloydminster Cemetery for the immediate family and members of the Lloydminster Fire Department, with the RCMP Honour Guard in attendance. McCaw Funeral Services Ltd. of Lloydminster administered the funeral arrangements. Todd’s full eulogy may be viewed on their website. Donations in memory of Todd may be made to the ALS Society. CARD OF THANKS Maureen and Calem would like to thank everyone for the overwhelming support and condolences during this difficult time. Thank you to all for the flowers, cards, food, phone calls, and charitable donations. We are forever grateful to live in such a caring and supportive community. Thanks to all for sharing your stories and memorable encounters of Todd with us. Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal. Chief David “Todd” Gustavson Nov 06, 1961 - Apr 4, 2015 “Chief” “Todd” “Gus” and a few unmentionables…… he liked them all! Ken: I am Ken Marchand. Retired Operations NCO from Lloydminster City Detachment. I was a friend and I had the pleasure of working a lot with Todd over the years. Don: I am Don Schille – fire fighter with Lloydminster Fire Department. I had the honour of serving under Chief as an active fire fighter with the department. Don: A big thank you to each and every one of you for making / taking the time to come and pay your respects to a man who gave his heart and soul to his family, his second family at the fire department his RCMP family and the members of this community. Let me say just how big an honour it is for us to have been asked to eulogize a man we will simply call a “good friend”. Look around this room today. How many people here would say the same thing. “Good friend”, husband, father, brother, leader, co-worker, mentor, colleague and ……..“partner in crime” if you were lucky enough to tip a pint or three in his garage. Ken: I retired from the RCMP in May 2012 after 25 years of service. On Remembrance Day – 2011 I told my family to snap as many photos as they wished because that that day would be the last day I would wear my red serge. Todd has once again made a liar out me. I donned my jersey again today. Not because it is comfortable, fits any better or because I miss wearing it. I am wearing my serge out of immense respect for a man who truly understands the “brotherhood and sisterhood” that exists amongst those who don a uniform and put themselves in harms’ way. Fire, EMS and Police was Todd’s work world and more importantly his personal / social world as well. He was very proud of the uniform and he is wearing it as we speak. Anyone who knew Todd also knew he was a man of contradictions as well. I often teased him about not wearing the said uniform that he was so proud off. Sweat pants were his weakness. Sure he wore his chief’s uniform when he had meetings or media interviews. But more times than not I would stop by Hall # 2 for a coffee and he was in Sweat pants and sneakers. Sneakers were more formal because it was sweat pants and Crocs when off duty. One RCMP member told me this week he will forever remember Todd walking into the detachment coffee room, for an impromptu coffee and to chew the fat, at 0430 am wearing his best sweat pants and crocs. Ken: The RCMP constables out on patrol knew they had a patron saint many a night. No one would ever accuse Todd of being Mr. sleepy head. Crazy insomniac yes…. sleepy head no. I used to tease him that it was his conscience keeping him awake but he jokingly assured me he did not have one. Many a night he was out in his Fire Chief unit prowling the city with his RCMP radio chattering in the back ground. RCMP members would leave a domestic dispute, a suspicious person / vehicle call, an intoxicated person call….. you name it… and they would see his department truck circling the area making sure everything was safe and that they were not alone. At times he would exit his vehicle and assist with an arrest if he felt his input was necessary. He was a shadow watching over you. He was this way with his fire department members as well. No one left behind and no one gets hurt on my watch!! This is who this man was…. a man of service looking out for his friends. Respect given and respect returned. Don: Todd was a very proud man. He also loved tradition. He was proud of his Fire Department, the men and women who served alongside him and the incredible feats they accomplished as a “team”. The fire department was his second family but it was also his life. Todd joined the department, in an unofficial capacity at birth. He formally joined in December 1977 just after he turned 16. He was a natural and lived and breathed the fire service. He skipped the captain rank and was promoted to a volunteer Deputy Chief in 1982. He became the full time fire chief in 1998. 37 years of unbroken service to his community! He worked hard to get to where he was. Holidays were spent at fire school in Vermillion. The dozens of courses he completed were on holiday time and after his regular work hours when he was still a volunteer. This all in addition to working full time, raising a family, attending fire scenes and attending fire practices. Dedication, focus and devotion. He loved the men and women under his command and would do anything for them. It wasn’t always a please or a thank you when on the job fighting a fire or training to attack a fire. But everyone knew. It wasn’t personal and it wasn’t mean spirited. It was “me” – as your leader and the one responsible to get you home safely to your family and friends – that was taking this responsibility seriously. With 40 plus fire fighters, Todd’s always had dragons to slay. There was always some personal issues that he was asked to wade into to assist his members. Some days he was a guidance counsellor / sounding board as much as he was an operational fire chief. It took its’ toll with the sheer volume of it all but he never quit. Todd lead fire practice as a natural leader. He was fond of posting the letters T.E.A.M. on a white board during the odd practice session and then explaining what this acronym meant to him / us: Together – Everyone - Accomplishes - More. He meant it and lived it. The bonds he formed at the fire department are the ones he cherished the most. He would do anything and everything to ensure the fire departments effectiveness and success. Ken: Todd was also very close to the RCMP. Both organizations are steeped in pride of service and built on tradition. When you add up the people who served over the years in both organizations, there was always a funny story here and a where are they now / what are they doing question there. This is what was important to Todd. Pride, tradition, service but most importantly the people he worked with and the friendships he developed. I quit getting the RCMP Quarterly when I retired. This is a 4X’s a year magazine on division news, retirements and promotions and Todd was the one keeping me in the loop the past three years. If Todd was your friend there was nothing he would not do for you. He would give you the shirt off of his back, tease you a bit for being dumb enough to need his shirt and then complain a bit about how you were wearing the shirt backwards, but shirt of his you were given. Ken: Integrity is defined as: “The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles and moral uprightness” Synonyms of integrity include: honest, rectitude, honor, ethics, decency, sincerity and truthfulness. Do we know anyone who held these values. Yes we do. Don’t we Chief? Don: We never had the honour of meeting Todd’s dad Chief Ted Gustavson. Having said that, it has been said Ted / Todd……. Todd / Ted. ….. if you met one you knew the other and vice versa. Todd was very proud of his family’s fire fighting tradition. Grandpa Martin, Father Chief Ted, Chief Todd and now Calem. Todd was very proud of his dad. Who isn’t? But pride in his son Calem was also quite obvious and ever present. When Calem joined the Fire Department 4 years ago Todd was tickled pink. His son was carrying on the family tradition and Todd knew he would become a valuable asset and welcome addition to the department. Calem has become a very dedicated and conscientious fire fighter. He has gathered a huge skill set and has become a fixture in the department taking on extra shifts, knowing the A-Z of the operations and working towards his courses and certification. Like Ted was with Todd before him, Todd might have been a little extra hard on Calem around the fire hall. This was just the game. Todd was very proud of Calem and spoke of him often in his social circle. Calem, you have grown up and have become a man in your own right. You will now make your own path in life but you will do it with some pretty good personality traits courtesy of your father. Todd enjoyed all times spent with you. Watching your motor cross years and mentoring / teaching his hunting buddy. As you carry on the family traditions, the family name and you develop as a fire fighter the biggest compliment you will hear is …..Todd / Calem ….. Calem / Todd………. if you met one you knew the other and vice versa. Ken: Maureen was a former RCMP constable, and was working for the City of Lloydminster as a bylaw officer, when she met Todd. This made her tough as nails and ready for a life in the fast lane. Todd could be stubborn and set in his ways (understatement, bold and highlighted) and Maureen’s strength kept him honest and manageable. They began dating on Todd’s birthday in 1992 (more on Todd and his birthdays later). They were married in August of 1993 and Calem was born on 1995. Todd thought the world of Maureen and all jokes and teasing aside, he knew she was his soul mate and partner for life. It is sad that the end came too soon but he was loyal to Maureen to the end. Her absolute strength this past week is an inspiration to all. As a couple you were hard working, genuine, hospitable and generous. Anyone in your home / garage always felt at “home”. Maureen, Todd loved you and many could take a lesson from him as a loyal husband and father. He spoke of you often, with love and pride, when he was with the boys. The more Todd teased and heckled a person the more he liked you. It is as simple as that. Anyone watching Todd and Maureen understood this. Don:Deputy Fire Chief Billy Cornfoot passed away on Christmas Eve 2013. Anyone who saw the way Todd looked after Billy and Ursula as they struggled with Billy’s advancing ALS prognosis will understand the meaning of the words loyalty and compassion. Todd, and the rest of the fire department family, were there every step of the way. Todd was heart broken as he watched Billy’s condition advance and the eventual loss of a dear friend and colleague. When Billy died Todd was a rock for the Cornfoot family. When Ursula asked Todd to do Billy’s eulogy he was honored and proud but nervous and stressed. (Ken and I now fully appreciate the feelings Chief had at the time) Todd prepared a beautiful and touching tribute to Billy and after was so proud and relieved. It did not end there. Todd, and the fire department family, have continued to work to bring awareness and fund raising for ALS. Billy was a huge part of the department and he is gone but not forgotten. Chief is now also gone but he will not be forgotten. He has huge shoes to fill and we will miss him dearly. Ken: Todd knew pretty much everyone. When he went to an EMO conference, Saskatchewan or Alberta Fire Chiefs meetings and starting asking about the current postings of past RCMP members from Lloyd the names made your head spin. If he was out in the public in Lloydminster he really did know everyone. No exaggeration. Todd was also a very talented, educated and knowledgeable Fire Chief. He knew his stuff and had no problems pin pointing a fires cause, quoting fire policies and did he have contacts. If you were ever in his old office at Fire Hall # 1, and could not see a square inch of wall with the framed fire course certificates on the wall, you got the feeling that he also knew everything. If you didn’t believe that all you had to do was ask him. All jokes aside, as mentioned earlier he worked very hard and earned every one of those courses and certificates. Ken: Right now Todd is laying here thinking this is way too serious. Firefighting and policing is a serious business so certain things need to be said and acknowledged. Story time folks: Don: No one here can picture it but it is true. At fire practice Chief would challenge the boys to an agility and foot race on occasion. How many of you guys were on the short end of that race? Todd was quick and agile. Athletic might be pushing it. He was no distance guy but his short bursts were an eye opener. And that now folks you can walk out here saying you truly did learn something new today. Ken: Todd had pride of ownership at home and at work. He saw the growth of Lloydminster and felt the community could use a command post for the Emergency Measures Organization, a large fire scene or a police crime scene. Todd found an old school bus and painstakingly restored it. He sanded every rivet on that thing. A dirty, dusty labour of love it was. It was painted fire engine red and the interior was equipped with radios, desks, a couch / rest area, fridge and it was a very impressive command post. I got to use it for an EMO exercise back in 2007 and it worked very well. A few months ago I was at hall # 2 having a coffee and I pointed at the bus and said too bad we only ever got to use that one time. As Maureen would say I got “the look”. This is the edited version. Don: The Husky upgrader flare tower. I wonder when they built the upgrader if they knew how many false fire alarms it would generate from the less robust citizens when it comes to common sense. Well one night, around 0200 am Todd was hanging out at the RCMP detachment coffee room when a call came into 9-1-1 of a large fire near Lloyd Comp High School. The caller said the flames were touching the sky. Todd jumped in with one of the constables and said he would check things out. So off they go in a PC and one of them was in sweat pants with crocs and his every trusty portable radio. The Fire Department was at the hall and staging with Todd telling them to stand by while he verified the fires status. They speak to the female caller at her apartment and she is pretty liquored up. Chief tells her to show me what you saw. They walk to the window and see the flare tower to the east. At this point the Fire radio is buzzing and he is being asked what is going on what is your status. Chief pulls his portable out of his sweat pants pocket and it goes flying and hit the floor. The antenna separates and goes under the couch. The fire fighters were calling from the hall ready to roll, the drunken woman is beaking and the constable is laughing so hard he was having trouble focusing. There is big Todd on hand and knees head stuck under the couch trying to find his antenna. Success. Antenna is back on the portable, the fire fighters are stood down at the hall and he goes to the young lady and asked do you know the cause of this whole mess? I’ll tell you A-L-C-O-H-O-L. You know the fire is U-P-G-R-A-D-E-R. There was more said but we have edited this out to keep this program rolling along. Ken: Todd and I would debrief and use one another as a sounding board. Some of our best chats were sitting at a picnic table in his garage surrounded by that shrine of Fire Department and RCMP memorabilia. And…..those awful beat up old shoes hanging from the ceiling that came from his feet. He was dancing it up and one of his shoes flew off and landed on the open garage door. They were spray painted red, mounted on a board and presented all while the festivities were in full swing during his 40 th birthday party. Oh what a feeling when you are dancing on the ceiling!! That damn garage was known for getting the “creative juices” flowing. We each had our job issues being in leadership positions. Policing is not an easy profession and the public is often not happy with some particular decision made, police car going too fast to a call, some complainant calling to say the members took too long to get there and so forth. You get the picture. I said to Todd it is different for you guys because everyone loves a fire fighter. Todd’s response was simple. He said “maybe I am smarter than you” I came back with that type A need for adrenaline that drives most police officers. I told him a full time fire fighter has two sleeps, two BBQ’s and then it is days off to your second job as a plumber. So how hard was that? The jabs went back and forth and then he told me if it is so easy why was I scared to join the fire department. Todd would poke you and he asked if I was I afraid to get my hands dirty and covered in smoke? Again I am editing out some of the narrative here. I said fair enough I would join but as an RCMP Sergeant my skill set should allow me to bypass an entry level position. I told him I thought Deputy Chief was asking for too much so I said how about the rank of battalion chief. He told me I was dumb and that there weren’t any In Lloydminster. I knew that but you have to appreciate our banter. I settled for Captain but he refused saying I knew nothing about fighting fire. Again edit point. A few weeks later I was up at the lake for the weekend and after a few fireside beverages it was off to bed. I found two Lt’s epaulettes on my pillow in the RV and my wife Michelle told me the Chief gave them to her to present to me. I am now an honorary Lt in the Lloyd City Fire Department. Not a resume builder, not really much of anything to be honest ……but just another fond memory of him. Don: In 2009 Todd took the plunge by purchasing a top of the line Fire Chief’s special Harley Davidson motorcycle. Fire engine red of course. He was hooked. This was a pride and joy thing. He went out to Cranbrook, BC with Vern Falscheer to pick it up and trailer it home. As they are rolling down the road a car starts to slow down and Todd pulls out and passes it. In short order this car pulls out and passes Todd and Vern. The car slows down again and Todd is getting a little miffed and tells Vern to pull out his fire light and put it on the dash. Todd gives the car the red light treatment and the other car pulls over while Todd drove by passing along greetings and well wishes. Again an edit point here. The car never tried to pass Todd again. Todd swore Vern to secrecy, until today, for using the red light in an unauthorized capacity. No surprises here. Ken: Todd was reluctant to get too far away from Lloydminster because he felt it might burn down while he was gone. After some coaxing from Sandra Falscheer and Maureen he agreed to head down to the black hills in South Dakota for a couples bike retreat May long weekend. They trailered the bikes to Sturgis. In one truck was Todd and Larry and Vern Falscheer. As they are heading out from Lloyd Todd sees a fellow dressed for winter on a Harley and says “you Clayton”. A few minutes later he sees a farmer working his field and the mud is flying as the farmer is have traction issues in the mud. He says “there is another Clayton”. Later on the four lane highway a car slows down right in front of them and Todd says “Clayton”. Larry says to Todd “you sure know a lot of Clayton’s” and Todd says you are a “Clayton”. It would seem that to Todd… Clayton had the same meaning as moron and dumb ass. Our apologies to anyone named Clayton here today. Todd had his own language and Clayton was one of those words from his dictionary. It leaves you wondering what the real story is behind “Clayton”. I can just picture it. Don: Todd learned to relax while being away from Lloyd on these bike trips. There is no helmet law in South Dakota so Todd decided to ride with his helmet off one day. With the wind whipping through his hair he felt great out on the open road. Being new to biking he did not apply any sun screen to his face and thinning scalp. At the end of the day his head was the same color as that fire engine red bike. He was scorched and suffering. Not being one for doctors or medicine he gave his dilemma some thought and to ease the pain he sampled some Rum medication in the Wild Hicock Saloon. The helmet went back on the next day and has never been optional since then. Ken: A couple of summers ago Todd and Maureen came for a BBQ on the deck. We were visiting after supper and the clouds darkened and a thunder storm rolled in. Todd’s sense of duty kicked in “again” and he said it was time to go because the fire alarms would start rolling in. We stood at the back door watching the skies swirling. My wife Michelle forgot something on the table and she went out to grab it just as a very close / loud clap of thunder boomed. Michelle screamed and pretty much dove back into the house. Todd was laughing so hard he had a coughing fit. He would often bring the story up and once again begin giggling all over. It just goes to show that he loved nothing more than friends, fun and laughter. Todd had a stern side as well, Michelle likes to burn candles and has been known to forget one lit and then head out of the house. She has seen more than one stern lecture from the fire chief. Well not really. A stern lecture that ended with laughing and giggling. Don: Todd was a professional truck driver before joining the Fire Department full time. Driving was in his blood. Maureen used to tease him about being the CFCW trucker of the year. Turtle Lake was a congregating point for family at the cabin. Todd`s niece Mallory fondly remembers Uncle Todd telling her that she could not ride in the boat unless she was able to back the truck boat and trailer down to the water’s edge. The fact that Mallory was 8 years old did not factor in here. He wasn’t kidding. He never sat in the truck with her on his knee. He stood next to the driver’s side of the truck and coached Mallory until she backed that truck and trailer down to the water. She was successful and he was just another proud uncle. Not to be outdone, nephew Cody was out driving Uncle Todd’s truck in the country. Mallory was an old pro at the tender age of 8 but Cody was only 5 years old. Off to the wood pile they went for fire wood. The adults were tossing wood onto the tail gate and 5 year old Cody was tasked with stacking it neatly behind the cab up to cab roof height. They stacked a few rows and Cody said “Uncle Todd we sure gotta a lot of wood here”. This became a standing joke over the years as Cody and Todd continued to say “we sure gotta a lot of fire wood here” with a five year olds voice and inflection. Ken: As the family was telling this story this week Mallory walked by and said you had to stack that wood nicely because you sure did not want to scratch the paint. Isn’t that the truth. Todd’s Harley, his F-150, his house, his garage, any piece of fire apparatus in Hall # 1 or Hall # 2 or any piece of equipment was always in show room / mint condition. No exceptions. Pride of ownership. Fire Fighter Steve Bert was cleaning up a pumper for the funeral on Wednesday. I was at Hall # 2 and was telling him how cleanliness was one of the stories in this eulogy. Steve showed me a very small scuff mark on an aluminum running board on the truck he was cleaning. Steve said this was the only time Chief yelled at him. Steve backed the truck in and hit something leaving the scuff. Chief demanded to know where in hell he got his driver’s licence. Steve pleaded his case saying it was just a small ding (it was pretty small) and Chief snapped “well I can see it and that’s all that matters”. Don: Todd was not much for big shows or splashy events. Having said that, Todd’s birthday was like Christmas to others. It was never about presents or being the center of attention. It was his one night to bring together his closest friends for revelry and good old fashion fun. Todd and Maureen put on a spread that could feed an army and everyone just mixed and socialized. If you got an invite to the garage you had an in into Todd’s social realm. He was honored to have you and you were honored to be there. With Todd it was all about friendship, laughter and comradery. It was that simple a recipe. Anyone having had the honor of being in the garage can quietly reflect on their favorite garage story. I will bet anyone here that there is multiple stories that come to mind and every one of them will bring tears of laughter. Good times folks. Ken: We have to have another obligatory garage story. Early on in the friendship, after a few visits to Todd’s garage, I felt there was an imbalance with me always drinking his beer. I came one evening and brought a case of beer. My mistake. Did I get an earful and a new arse torn. He was offended and made no bones about it. It was the last beer ever taken into his stomping grounds. The best I could do to return the favour was to offer him a couple of beer in my garage when he made the summer tour on the Harley. We would chat and I would always show him how the Lloydminster Fire Dept. clock he gave me never kept time. He would invite me to shut the front door and turn it back in if I was that ungrateful. He would then remind me to change the batteries every so often. I had been welding so I had the battery out of the smoke detector as well. He noticed that and lectured me further. Then he mentioned my Michelle and leaving her candles unattended again. He was not much for an open debate at times. Don: Well well, another story about casual clothing. Todd was at a fire scene and was caught in a media photo fighting the fire. In turnout gear…. No not really. He was wearing shorts and his Crocs. City management “dealt” with him over his lack of PPE and he was counselled. What changed…… not much really. Todd simply became more crafty in staying out of the media photos and the lime light after this. Did we mention that he could be stubborn. Ken: Old school would be another accurate descriptor for Todd. Many who knew him were amazed when he graduated to an iphone with one stop shopping for email and texting. Todd despised emails and barely tolerated texting. His iphone would be pinging and he would curse “why can’t they just pick up the phone and call”. “What the hell is wrong with people”. Knowing this I chose to text just to torment him. I could get one maybe two text replies back. I would keep going and then my phone would ring and I was getting a lecture on stupidity. Another edit point. Ken: Post RCMP I did photo enforcement for two years before moving onto other things. Todd would tell me I am a fool for making this admission to such a large crowd. Now Messum Park was a favorite location for taming traffic in a long park speed zone on a busy thoroughfare. Unbeknownst to me, a fire was called in and was dispatched. The boys and girls were enroute to the fire halls to deploy. Sitting in Messum Park I observed a white Chevy pickup coming through at what I would estimate 90 KPH. This vehicle had on it’s four way flashers and was going against the designated speed enforcement direction so there was no speed recorded. Todd and I had discussed Fire Fighters driving habits when I was the Ops NCO and he was the Chief. We both agreed that if you have a collision enroute to the hall you do no one any good. The fire fighters were instructed to make their way to hall in a safe manner obeying the rules of the road. I called Todd and told him I suspected one of his fire fighters blew through a 30 KPH park zone doing around 90 KPH. Todd had the RCMP radio channel on his Fire Radios. After I got off of the phone with him he heard the RCMP querying a plate for speeding. Alberta marker “Busted” before letting the driver (fire fighter) go to attend the fire call. B-U-S-T-E-D = C-A-L-E-M. After the fire was out and everyone was back at the hall Chief pulled up and walked into the hall and kicked a garbage can clear across the room and started his rant about excessive speeds responding to fire calls. We will edit the rest of Todd’s fireside chat with his crew out. Let’s just say that poor Calem and this man standing right next to me knew the Chief was not a happy camper. “Busted” Calem. Don: The last story goes to Doug Rodwell. Everyone has a boss and as the manager of public safety, Doug was Todd’s. I will qualify this by saying that just because someone has a boss does not make them easily “supervisable”. The new RCMP Detachment held a grand opening this past October. Throughout its’ construction Todd would bring over the aerial ladder truck so photos could be taken of its’ building progress (some would argue lack of progress but that is for another day and time) He watched this building go up from the basement to completion. For the grand opening, K Division RCMP flew in their helicopter for the festivities. Doug asked for a volunteer to guide the helicopter onto the designated blocked off spot in the parking lot. Todd offered and went about his business. With hands high over his head he wasn’t surrendering but was getting the helicopter to line up with him. As the helicopter touched down Chief lowered his body to get under the rotors. Being an agile and finely tuned instrument Todd’s twisted body met the rotor wash and you know the final outcome. Humpty Dumpty came crashing down. Doug witnessed this poetry in motion and Todd swore him to absolute secrecy. Doug being the stand up guy that he is did nothing of the sort and the tormenting emails were flying the next day. The email string included the Deputy CAO Kirk Morrison. He was referencing that even Hercules would have struggled here. Newly minted Inspector Suki Manj was scrambling to take possession of “the dirt on Chief” by way of supposed video evidence, Doug was pouring fuel on the fire by emailing ……..that when the Chief’s portable hit the ground “Brian from life line was calling to see if he needed assistance after another detected fall”. Todd ended it all with an email stating he was happy to have brought so many smiles to so many faces and ending it by threatening everyone with pay back. His subsequent verbal discussion with Doug will remain censored at this point in time. Doug wanted us to end this story with the following. “A wise man once said that it is our goal in life to leave this place in better shape than when we found it. Todd did that and more, rest easy my friend”. Ken: We could stand up here until sunset telling stories. There are entirely too many to tell. There will be an open Mic at lunch for anyone wanting to share a thought or two. Maureen and Calem encourage you to start thinking up a funny story or a memory from the past to share in a few minutes. Wrap up: Ken: Todd was not one to sugar coat things. Me neither. It is why we got along so well. Every time I got onto Todd about his smoking, and it was a lot, he would grab a smoke light one up and tell me “You’re going to miss me when I am gone” He would smile and let out a laugh. Well my friend you are right again!! I / we /all of us here will miss you!!! It is sad that he is gone, it sad that he was so young but we are all better for having known him, having spent time with him, having been served by him as a community leader and most importantly having a laugh and a beverage with him. Todd would be so proud to have such a large gathering and being sent out in style with the formality of a man in uniform serving his community. Just like his hero Chief Ted. Right now Chief Todd is watching over us with a Players filter in one hand and a rum in the other. Rest easy Chief. Rest easy. Don:On behalf of all of the men and women serving in the Lloydminster Fire Department I want to thank everyone for their genuine support and encouragement this past week. We thank you for showing your respects and your gratitude to Todd and his family. We could not have done this without the community support and the internal brother and sisterhood that was built and nurtured by our beloved chief. Todd was our chief, our leader, our counsellor, our coach and our mentor. But most importantly he was our friend. We have a huge void to fill with his absence. Thank you for your service Chief. 37 years of fire service and 53 years of giving.