Lance Overmyer's Retirement & Birthday

The City Tavern on 19^th September 2008 was the scene of a celebration for the 65^th birthday of Lance Overmyer and his retirement from the Culver Union Towship Fire Department.<

A chief and a friend: Overmyer honored for years of service
Sept. 25, 2008
By Jeff Kenney, Citizen Editor

Hail to the 'chief' Former Culver fire chief Lance Overmyer was "honest to God shocked" at a full-house reception Sept. 19 to honor him for his 43 years of service as a fireman, his 65th birthday, and his many contributions to the Culver community

When the man of the hour crossed the threshold of Culver’s City Tavern Sept. 19, he had no expectation that a capacity crowd had filled the entire room to honor him; that the Culver Academies board of trustees and Culver town council had created resolutions to celebrate his decades of tireless service and dedication; and that his family and ‘extended’ family of Culver’s volunteer firemen had prepared heartfelt tributes to his life and impact in the community. That man was Lance

Overmyer, whose 65th birthday and 43rd year as a Culver fireman were the official motive behind the gala event in his honor. Mike Sheskey and wife Susan – longtime supporters of the fire dept. and a host of other Culver area entities – were behind the gathering, in conjunction with Lynn, Overmyer’s wife of 44 years, his family, the fire dept., and City Tavern owner Larry Surrisi.

Overmyer first joined the department in 1965, serving as captain from 1980 to 1984, secretary-treasurer from 1984 to 1987, and chief from 1993 to 2006.

A graduate of Culver High . School and Manchester College, father of four children (and now grandfather of four more), Overmyer also served locally as softball, baseball, and soccer coach, also volunteering with Culver’s Meals on Wheels, Jaycees, and Chamber of Commerce.

Sheskey, emcee for the evening, praised Lynn’s support of Lance “every step” and noted, “For generations of Culver kids, Lance was ‘fireman Lance,’ ‘coach Lance,’ ‘Uncle Lance,’ and ‘chief Lance,’ but he was always someone they could call on for help.”

In introducing the Academy trustees’ resolution, head of schools John Buxton said he and wife Pam have “gotten to know Lance and Lynn pretty well. If you think it’s tough being a firefighter, try being a firefighters wife.”

“In both jobs (as firefighter and with Overmyer Soft Water),” Buxton pointed out, “Lance is one of the few people in Culver who still makes house calls! What would we do without the water he provides us for drinking and safety?”

Buxton cited Overmyer’s involvement in many fire calls of service to the Academy over the years, most especially the Nov. 1977 fire that destroyed the school’s gymnasium and the Sept., 2007 fire at South Barracks.

Town council president Sally Ricciardi recognized Overmyer on behalf of the council, quipping, “I’ve known Lance my entire life, since he’s older than I am!”

“He’s always been a friend,” she added. “All the citizens of Culver wish him well upon his retirement from active duty.”

On behalf of Union Township, Bobbie Ruhnow presented Overymyer a certificate of appreciation and recalled working with him during her 12 year tenure as Culver town clerk.

Ruhnow shared the story of Overmyer’s “charming town board president Joann Farmer and I, and the whole fire department, into buying a new fire truck. We didn’t know you had to get permission from the state first. We bought the truck and then got a call from the state auditor’s office, (and) they said, ‘You and Miss Farmer and Chief Overmyer just bought yourselves a truck!’ Luckily we got out of that.”

Current fire chief and longtime department member Mike Grover fondly remembered his own father’s service as a fireman and Overmyer’s “picking on me (as a child) like he does my kids now.

“He’s been involved in (fellow firemen’s) personal lives, been to our weddings, and been around our kids when they were little,” continued Grover, who shared several humorous tales from Overmyer’s past. “One night he came to the station with his shirt on backwards and another night with his wife’s pajama top on! He learned you don’t look down the end of a fire hose too long.”

Grover presented Overmyer his own helmet, which he said the department retired, all the members having signed it. Fireman Dave Cooper presented Overmyer a large plaque he’d made. “Even today,” Grover added, “we still use the changes he made at the fire dept. All of us on the dept. will always know Lance as ‘chief.’”

Culver Chamber of Commerce president Mike Stallings also presented Overmyer a plaque honoring him.

Overmyer’s daughter Shelly shared recollections of younger brother Lance Jr. and sisters Amy and the late Sally, growing up with her as a fire chief’s children.

“I remember all the disrupted dinners,” she said, “the sleep-less nights and missed events, the sound of dad rushing down the hall and running into the door, which was still closed, head on! When we heard him pull out of the drive-way, we hoped and prayed he’d come back to us. When I started to date, he made sure I knew where all the fire stations were. If I got into trouble, I could go and tell them my dad was a fireman in Culver and that I needed help, and they would take care of me.”

“I remember when the gym burned at the Academy, and dad came home and reassured me none of my friends had been involved. Or that horrible night the grocery store on East Shore burned. All of (the firemen were) standing there draped in ice from the hose spray... the wives took them sandwiches and coffee when dealing with the situation on the west side of town.”

“As long as I have been alive,” she concluded, “you’ve been a Culver fireman. A firefighter to the end, no matter if your helmet is hung or retired, or your boots laid to rest. Thank you, dad, for giving us the extended family of these nice (firemen) here. We’re proud of you and we love you.”

Longtime friend and fellow firefighter Bill Snyder called Overmyer “one hell of a guy. He’s top notch; I can’t say anything bad about him.”

Lance Overmyer himself addressed the crowd, recalling his entrance into the fire department when then-town marshal Don Mikesell pulled his vehicle over. “(Mikesell) said, ‘You’re on the fire department!’ I said, ‘Maybe I don’t want to be on the…fire department.’ He said, ‘You’re going to be on the fire department whether you like it or not!’ He was my elder, so I said ok.”

Overmyer thanked Sheskey for his contributions to the fire department and for the evening’s festivities, and expressed appreciation for his fellow firemen. “Firemen are a different breed of cat. I’ve learned so much from these guys; it’s amazing.”

Overmyer admitted the event took him by complete surprise.“Thank all of you for coming tonight. If ever one person was honest to God really shocked, it’s me. I never expected something like this.

An 'extended family' - Lance Overmyer with veteran members of the tight-knit Culver-Union Twp. volunteer fire department:

Fireman Dave Cooper presents a plaque he made in honor of Lance Overmyer.
	Two longtime veterans of Culver's fire dept., Bill Snyder (right) and Overmyer share memories and accolades.
Overmyer addresses the crowd, flanked by current fire chief Mike Grover.

(Photos by Jeff Kenney