With echoes

of their favorite subject ringing in their ears ­ "How Things

Used To Be" ­ Peachtree City firefighters, paramedics and Fire

Department office staff honored their own recently.

Volunteers

and career personnel, with spouses or friends, accepted awards and installed

officers in their annual dinner-dance, conducted this year at the Wyndham

Conference Center.

C.J. Mowell

Jr., who has served Fayette County as coroner for 36 years ­ a tenure

longer than that of any other elected county official ­ was guest

speaker. A volunteer chief of the Fayetteville Fire Department in the

early 1970s, Mowell regaled his audience with stories of a more primitive

day when volunteers of both departments answered calls all over the county.

He concluded by stating that he believes their cooperation went a long

way to helping bond Fayette's often contentious east and west sides.

The evening

included speeches and a slide presentation that paid tribute to fallen

brothers in the World Trade Center tragedy. Ron Mundy was master of ceremonies;

the invocation and the benediction were offered by Fire Department rookie

the Rev. Kevin Peek of Holy Trinity Catholic Church and by one-time firefighter/paramedic

the Rev. John Weber of Christ Our Shepherd Lutheran Church.

The volunteers'

new president is Fred Bryant. Robin Lasky serves as vice president, and

David Sewall and Greg Francis are treasurer and secretary, respectively.

The volunteers' firefighter's representative to the board is John Bruschetti,

while Precy Eiswerth is the new representative for emergency medical services.

Awards for

the past year's service ­ based on hours of training, runs made and

loyalty to the department's ideals ­ went to career firefighters

as well as volunteer. Bruschetti was named volunteer Firefighter of the

Year. The career Firefighter of the Year is Andy Lee.

The volunteer

EMS-Provider of the Year is Natalie Johnson; her career counterpart is

Wil Harbin. The volunteer Rookie of the Year is Greg Francis. And the

career Officer of the Year is Ed Eiswerth.

The Peachtree

City Rotary Club's award, presented by Rotarian Dale Phenicie, went to

John Dailey. With it came a cash grant of more than $1,600 to the department.

Chief Stony

Lohr also paid tribute to Dr. Bruce Perlman, who has served as medical

adviser to the department for 15 years. Perlman is stepping down, citing

the heavy schedule of his expanding medical practice.