Nearly 20 years to the day that Ray Haring accepted the challenge of running the Elmwood Township Fire Department, he figures it’s time to start looking for a replacement.

Haring, speaking at the Township Board monthly meeting held last week, announced that he plans to retire in one year.

“My wife and I have sat down and talked very hard on this ... I plan to retire,” he said.
The decision did not come easy, board members could tell, as Haring spoke with a tear in his eye and a lump in his throat.

“I didn’t want to. My heart isn’t that good, and my job has been taking me farther and farther away,” he said. The wishes of his wife of 23 years, Judy Kalar, played heavily into his decision, he said.

Haring, who suffered a heart attack at 3 p.m. April 29, 2008 — like others whose hearts have faltered, he can recall every detail of the trauma — is one of four owners of Salamander Technologies based in Traverse City. The company has been booming with sales of personal identification tags that are read with scanners, and other technologies that have been in demand since 9-1-1.

Haring is in charge of servicing 19 states and three Canadian provinces, but still manages to keep a hand on the steering wheel of the Elmwood fire department. He’s paid under $12 per hour for his Elmwood services; his paychecks totaled just $8,000 in all of 2006.

That’s still better than his pay when assuming the position of fire chief in February 1990. “There was no pay,” he recalled.

Haring, speaking in a later interview, said he feels good about the condition he’ll be leaving the fire department, whose future was in jeopardy just a few months ago after two property tax requests failed in 2007. But the millage was approved in November, securing a reliable funding source for the department.
Every two years, Haring said he re-examines his goals for moving the department forward. In June, the department ordered a new fire truck to replace a 28-year-old vehicle that was growing more expensive to maintain. He and other Elmwood firefighters just sent in the paperwork for a new International Organization for Standardization (ISO) fire rating that could result in cost reductions in homeowners’ insurance policies.
The savings could be substantial, up to $175 per year, he said.

Those two accomplishments required some heavy lifting. During the next year he hopes to review all fire department policies and procedures.
“I’m going to make sure they are all in order before I leave,” he said.

Haring has seen the best and worst of times during his tenure. Soon after assuming control, the effect of a state law requiring volunteer firefighters to undergo extensive training took its toll on the  department.
“When I took over the department we went from 35 firefighters to seven overnight. That’s when it started becoming a business and not a club any more,” he said.

After stabilizing the department, there were many more challenges to overcome. He helped lead an effort to build a new fire station adjacent to the Township Hall that opened in 2002. And he pushed for the hiring of the department’s first two full-time firefighters, whose future employment was soon in question after millage requests to fund their positions failed by lopsided margin.

“I’d say the last years have been the hardest on me as fire chief. Elmwood is changing so drastically. You’re either white collar or elderly,” he said, making recruitment a constant worry.

But Haring said he’s been rejuvenated by the election of supervisor Jack Kelly. “The way he’s doing things, I’d like to continue longer,” he said.

Haring’s early announcement will give the township a year to find a replacement and consider the best path for the department. It will also give him plenty of time to say good-by, and to express thanks to fellow firefighters for their support.

“It hasn’t been me. I told (Elmwood firefighters) what they had to do, and they got it done,” said Haring.