Archive for February 19th, 2014

Sentencing for theft from Aurora FF’s Credit Union

Feb 19

Posted by Admin in Fire Department News | 1 Comment

The former president of the Aurora Firefighters Credit Union was sentenced to three years of probation, 150 days of electronic home monitoring and 30 days in jail after admitting to stealing from the union. Anne M. Schaal, 67, of the 0-99 block of Birchwood Court, Sugar Grove, was arrested in September 2012 and accused of stealing $36,000 over a five-year span.

Schaal pleaded guilty last week to felony theft and could be resentenced to up to seven years in prison if she violates her probation, according to Kane County court records. Schaal stole money from the union to feed a gambling addiction, according to papers filed by her husband for a divorce that was finalized in 2012.

Aurora police said they began investigating Schaal in December 2011 and she was accused of stealing between January 2006 and November 2011.

Under a plea agreement approved by Judge Clint Hull, Schaal must pay $4,565 in court fines and costs and is to have no contact with the union. Her 30-day jail sentence can be cut in half for good behavior.

According to a lawsuit filed by the union against Schaal, she was president from July 1996 through November 2011 and stole the money … using union credit cards and “phantom payments” in the union ledger. The lawsuit was dismissed in September 2013 after Schaal and the credit union reached an out-of-court settlement, according to court records.

Wade Joyner, an attorney representing the credit union in the lawsuit, said Schaal made a payment to the union to settle claims for damages. Joyner refused to say what Schaal paid. “The Aurora Firefighters Credit Union accepted what she was willing to do to resolve it,” Joyner said.

The credit union represents nearly 600 members.

thanks Dan

Tags: Anne M. Schaal, Aurora Firefighters Credit Union, Judge Clint Hull

New squad for MESS Canteen

Feb 19

Posted by Admin in Fire Service News, Fire Truck photos | 3 Comments

From Tim Olk:

The new Mess Canteen M-5 , quartered at the Barrington Countryside FPD station on Pepper Road, is X-Woodstock FRD. One of the features of the new unit is slide-out trays for supplies at deployments replacing the need for folding tables alongside the squad.

Former Woodstock FRD squad now serves the MESS Canteen Service as M-5. Tim Olk photo

Woodstock FRD Squad 482 after being decommissioned. Larry Shapiro photo

canteen service aids firefighters at fire scene

MESS Canteen’s new unit working it’s second fire scene. Larry Shapiro photo

Tags: fire truck has new life, former Woodstock FRD squad now with MESS Canteen, Larry Shapiro, MESS Canteen, new unit for MESS Canteen Service, Tim Olk, Woodstock Fire Rescue District

Schaumburg may increase job prerequisites

Feb 19

Posted by Admin in Fire Department News | 2 Comments

The Daily Herald has an article discussing a possible increase in the requirements to become a Schaumburg firefighter.

Schaumburg’s public safety committee has recommended lowering the maximum starting age from 40 to 35 for newly hired police officers and firefighters, as well as requiring new firefighters to hold bachelor’s degrees as village police officers already do.

The recommended change to the age requirements is being made to comply with current state statute. But the statute is very detailed and contains many exceptions — including for having served in the military, Assistant Village Attorney Rita Elsner said.

The statute also makes 21 the minimum age for new hires. Schaumburg Police Chief James Lamkin said this implies an expectation of a certain level of maturity among police officers.

And with Schaumburg’s long-running requirement for its police officers to hold any type of bachelor’s degree, there’s an overall breadth of knowledge and experience the village expects from its officers, Lamkin said.

Schaumburg will probably be more rare in the near future for requiring any kind of bachelor’s degree for its new firefighters, Assistant Village Manager Paula Hewson said. Until now, the village has required either an associate degree or a bachelor’s degree.

But new applicants have already been receiving preference points for having bachelor’s degrees, putting them higher up on the hiring list, Hewson said.

Because of this, among the pool of candidates seeking jobs at the Schaumburg Fire Department, the new requirement probably won’t make much difference in whom is actually hired, Hewson added.

The statute applies when a new hiring list is being created, and most lists are valid for two or three years after testing, she said.

Approximately 390 candidates tested this month for Schaumburg’s police officer hiring list, Lamkin said.