The Oberlin Fire Department Annual Awards and Recognition dinner was held on Monday, December 7. In attendance were personnel from the fire department and their spouses.

During this dinner, special awards were presented in the following categories:

The purpose of the Firefighter of the Year award is to recognize and acknowledge the significant contributions or achievements made by a fire department employee during the year. Selection is based upon the individual's demonstration of outstanding work performance during the current year in several different areas, such as:  1) maintaining a high level of participation to emergency responses, training and departmental activities;  2) contributions toward the improvement in the efficiency or effectiveness of customer services through program innovation and creativity;  3) personal actions that promote pride in the department and fosters a teamwork environment; and,  4) serving a major role in the improvement or enhancement in the delivery of customer services.

The 2009 Firefighter of the Year award was presented to Firefighter Emily Jindra.   Emily was selected to receive the award for her high esprit de corps (inspiring enthusiasm, devotion and strong regard for the department) and high level of participation in department community relations.  

The purpose of the Length of Service Award is to establish a formal recognition system to acknowledge the continued service to the community by an individual firefighter. The individual award is made for every five years or more of service to the Oberlin Fire Department.

This year's award recipients include: