BY ANDY TAYLOR

INDEPENDENCE — Attempts to reappointment Wilbur Schwatken, Jr., as rural fire coordinator failed to garner majority support by Montgomery County commissioners on two different occasions at Monday’s meeting of the Montgomery County Commission.

Commissioners met with members of the Montgomery County Rural Fire District #1 board of directors on Monday — just two weeks after commissioners Fred Brown and Tony Fowler chose not to reappoint Schwatken to his rural fire coordinator position for 2009. Commissioner Larry McManus presented the initial motion to reappoint Schwatken at the April 20 meeting,  and he offered the same motion (on two occasions) at Monday’s meeting. However, Fowler and Brown chose not to second McManus’ motions, thereby killing the issue.

McManus’ attempt to reappoint Schwatken came as the commission dealt with two grievance letters: one from the Montgomery County Rural Fire District #1 Board of Directors and the other from Schwatken, who was not present at Monday’s meeting. In both grievance letters, the commission was asked to reappoint Schwatken to his job as rural fire coordinator.

Tensions were high at Monday’s meeting as rural fire board directed concerns to the commission, namely Fowler and Brown. The rural fire board presented a petition bearing the names of individual rural fire department members who chose to sign their names in support of Wilbur Schwatken as the rural fire coordinator. The petitions also listed two other choices for rural fire coordinator: Jim Miller, current emergency preparedness director, and Gene Tucker, who was the rural fire coordinator prior to Schwatken’s appointment in 2003. According to the rural fire board members, none of the petitions showed support for Miller or Tucker.

Even with the show of support for Schwatken at Monday’s meeting, Fowler, who is the commission chairman, said he stood by his decision to not reappoint Schwatken. When repeatedly asked to name specific instances why he believed Schwatken was not suited for the role as rural fire coordinator, Fowler remained tight lipped, only to say that Schwatken’s job performance was a “personnel matter” and, therefore, could not warrant any public comments from the commission.

“I know you don’t like me to talk, Tony, but I have to ask one question: do you have a vendetta against Wilbur Schwatken or his family,” asked Richard Catron, who was among the seven members of the rural fire board present at Monday’s meeting.

“This would be neither the time or place to answer it,” said Fowler, adding that his response to such questions will always be “no comment.”

It marked the second time that Catron had asked Fowler at Monday’s meeting to elaborate on his decision to not reappoint Schwatken.

“Don’t you think the citizens in Montgomery County are entitled to know what the reasoning was that you terminated him and what the direction you are wanting to go,” Catron asked.

Fowler said he had no comment on the matter and that he would refuse to let the meeting “turn into a question and comment period.”

Randy Haymaker, rural fire board president, asked Fowler if he (Fowler) had come up with the “new direction” that Fowler has cited in news interviews and at the April 27 meeting concerning the rural fire coordinator position.

“My thoughts have been the same from the beginning: to discuss that at this point in time is inappropriate,” said Fowler.

Rural fire board members then pointed their questions toward commissioners Fred Brown and Larry McManus. They asked the two commissioners if they knew the “new direction” that Fowler was talking about in regard to the rural fire coordinator position.

“I don’t know the direction, but I think we’re going to make those decisions,” said Brown, in his only comment in the two and a half hour discussion about the rural fire department situation.

McManus shook his head negatively when asked he knew any details of Fowler’s “new direction.”

“Then it looks like the cart is ahead of the horse, Tony,” said Catron to Fowler.

McManus responded by saying the commissioner needed to discuss the matter further.

“I think there needs to be a plan in place,” said McManus. “We can’t leave things in limbo.”

Other rural fire board members who made comments include:

• Jeff Russell of the Havana division, “We’re sitting here with our britches down and it’s not a good feeling.  We need to know where to go?  Out of the clear-blue sky, Wilbur is gone from his job. No pre-notice. Just “boom.” Gone. And, when you fall down like this, it’s hard to get back up.”

• Marty Smith of the Dearing division, “Why can you not look in the same direction as to what all of your firefighters were working at? That’s exactly the direction Wilbur was leading us. We were heading in the right direction. You guys (Fowler and Brown ) had better open your eyes because to throw mud at our face doesn’t do very good. There’s enough mudslinging as it is. We had a good man in Wilbur. We were going in the right direction. You threw it away, and, I’ve been around long enough to get a feeling that you are going to point us in the wrong direction.”

• Denise Finney of the Tyro division, “Our day to day operations within the rural fire department cannot continue” without a fire coordinator in place.

• Dan Reardon of the Liberty division, “In lieu of these petitions showing overwhelming support for Wilbur Schwatken, I would like to make the recommendation that the county commission reappoint him to the rural fire coordinator position.”

Fowler said the personnel matter relating to Schwatken could only be discussed in executive session, which is closed to the press and public. After initially agreeing to meet with the entire rural fire board behind closed doors, commissioners decided to discuss the matter with only Haymaker, who, as rural fire board president, serves as the rural fire board’s leader by title. The commission met with Haymaker for more than 20 minutes with no action taken during that closed-door conference.

So, what happens now without a rural fire coordinator position? Commissioners did agree, based upon the recommendation of the rural fire board, to allow Rhonda Russell of the Havana division to pay the rural fire district’s bills while Andrew Schaper of the Independence division will serve as coordinator and chief contact person while the commission develops its plans for the rural fire coordinator’s duties. Russell will be paid $175 per month plus mileage while Schaper will be paid on an hourly basis plus mileage. Schaper will not be given the health benefits package that is afforded to other county employees.

At the age of 90, Sycamore resident Adolf Wildgrube also pressed commissioners for details about their decision to not reappoint Schwatken and whether the commission can, as a point of law, seek to have the rural fire coordinator position and the emergency preparedness director’s position merged into one job. Wildgrube has been known in local government circles for being a persistent questioner of governmental spending and transparency, sometimes to the annoyance of the elected officials. Although health problems and age slowed his questions more than five years ago, he was able to leave his bed at Independence nursing home and make his voice heard at Monday’s commission meeting.

“I told that the staff at the nursing home that I wouldn’t be back for dinner until I got my questions answered,” said Wildgrube. “Looks like I’m going to be late for dinner.”