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City of Ramsey Fire Chief Dean Kapler Announces Retirement After 28 years of service with the Ramsey Fire Depart- ment, Fire Chief Dean Kapler has announced his retire- ment. Chief Kapler has been a resident of the City of Ramsey for 37 years. He began working for the Ramsey Fire Department as a Paid -on-call firefighter in 1988. Kapler then moved up the ranks to Paid -on-call Lieutenant, Paid -on-call Asistant Fire Chief and was named the Paid -on-call Fire Chief in 1995. In 1998, Kapler was hired into a full-time role as the Fire Chief and Public Works Director, where he served for 8 years before the two roles were split and Kapler took on his current tide as Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director. As Chief, Kapler oversees all services provided through the Fire Department. He is responsible for the recruitment and retention of 55 firefighters, and maintains 3 fire stations: two in Ramsey and one in the City of Nowthen. As the Emergency Management Director, Kapler also works to ensure selected staff are prepared for emergencies through annual training and the county -wide emergency management function. Over the last 28 years, Chief Kapler has played a role in many great achievements for the Ramsey Fire Depart- ment. One of Kapler's most memorable accomplishments includes the Joint Powers Agreement that was established with the City of Nowthen. "Rather than planning to build a third fire station in Ramsey, we worked with the City of Nowthen to create an agreement that allowed us to provide better coverage for the northern por- tion of Ramsey, and bring fire service within the borders of Nowthen;' Kapler explained. Chief Kapler has headed up con- struction at the new location of Fire Station #2; a project that he will see through to completion, as his retire- ment will coincide with the opening of the fire station on or before March 1, 2016. Kapler is also proud of the part- nership upheld between the City of Ramsey Fire and Police Departments. "It is a very critical relationship in pro- viding well -coordinated emergency ser- vices," Kapler stated, something that the City of Ramsey, its residents, and businesses have been fortunate to experience under Kapler's leadership for close to three decades. We thank him for his years of service to our community and wish him the best of luck as he looks forward to enjoying his hobbies of hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, and spend- ing time with his grandchildren and at his cabin in Outing, MN. Mayors Trail Ride - Saturday, February 6, 2016 Anoka County Fairgrounds Snowmobilers! The Mayors of Andover, Anoka, Nowthen, Oak Grove, Ramsey and St. Francis invite you to attend the Mayors Trail Ride on Saturday, February 6 (weather and trail safety dependent). The event will begin at the Anoka County Fair Grounds Park with a rider registration at 10:00 a.m. and ends at McDuff's Eatery & Pub at 3:00 p.m. Cost is $10 per person for pre -registration and $20 per person day of registration, with all proceeds going to the Andover Anoka Ramsey Youth First organization and other non -profits decided by each Mayor. Participants can stop at select locations along the trail for great event specials. For more information, please visit the City of Ramsey website at http://www.cityoframsey.com/node/1905.