The West Hartford Fire Department recently held a badging ceremony to mark the promotion of three of its members.

By Ronni Newton

The West Hartford Fire Department recently celebrated the promotion of several members to new roles, and the following week, another special ceremony marked the official rolling out of a new piece of apparatus.

Family, friends, colleagues, and town officials attended the badge pinning at Town Hall last month, recognizing the promotion of Troy Shipley to captain, Eric Wilson to lieutenant, and Ryan Kelleher to apparatus operator.

“Each will tell you the process is no joke. It represents month, and often years, of preparation,” Chief Greg Priest said. “And true to their character, each will also tell you how honored they were to be selected alongside peers of exceptional caliber who were competing for the same ranks,” he added.

These are challenging times, the chief said, and that creates opportunities for “real leadership,” he said, which “requires knowledge, experience, training, intuition – and above all a genuine desire to bring people together and move forward.” Those who are being promoted are the reasons for the department’s past successes, and will shape the future, he said.

“West Hartford Fire has incredibly talented people, we provide an excellent service, and will continue to do so well into the future, especially with the committed and effective leadership of those promoted today,” added Priest.

Mayor Shari Cantor thanked all fire department members for their service, for waking up every day prepared to “run to danger and face the unknown.” It’s already been an active year, she said, with multiple fires over the past several weeks, “and the fire department has proven time after time how professional, how prepared, how caring, and how really important you are to the foundation of the community.”

Town Manager Rick Ledwith also expressed his thanks and welcomed the families. “Events like this are a reminder that while promotions are earned on the job, they are supported by families at home, and we are incredibly grateful for that support that our firefighters receive from their families.”

The promotions reflect years of service, but also “the trust of their peers and leadership team, and a proven commitment to professionalism, teamwork, and public safety,” said Ledwith. While their work is demanding, unpredictable, and often dangerous, he said, “it is also essential to the safety and stability of our town and we are grateful for that.”

Deputy Chief Jarrad Smith, who served as emcee of the badging ceremony, introduced the department members being honored and shared their biographies.

Capt. Troy Shipley has been a career firefighter since 2004, and a member of the West Hartford Fire Department since 2009, finding “a permanent home to manifest his fire service journey” after living in Maine, Colorado, and New Hampshire, Smith said.

Shipley was promoted to lieutenant in 2020, and has been serving as acting captain at Station 3 in Elmwood since January 2025.

He has been involved in teaching, training, and community prevention roles, and when not at work, Smith said, “can be found at the ice rink coaching hockey with his sons, on the trails in Maine snowmobiling with his rowdy group of ‘sled-bros,’ or hunting and fishing with his family and extended fire family.”

There are just five captains among the West Hartford Fire Department’s 90-plus members, and at each of the town’s five fire stations, the captain is the senior supervising fire officer, “the standard-bearer – responsible for the safe, organized, and effective operation” of that fire company, Smith said. “The captain is a leader of leaders; through their actions and their direction they are responsible for setting the tone of readiness, excellence, and professionalism amongst all of the other officers and firefighters assigned to that company.”

Lt. Eric Wilson is a second-generation firefighter, and has been a member of the West Hartford Fire Department for just over five years, Smith said. He has a master’s degree in public administration with a focus on fire and EMS, and is in his 12th year of military service, currently as a firefighter with the Connecticut Army National Guard. Wilson previously was a human intelligence collector in the U.S. Army and ws deployed to Afghanistan in 2014 during Operating Enduring Freedom.

“The leap from firefighter to fire officer signifies a willingness to accept a higher obligation to the public and to the other members of the department,” Smith said. “This position represents a crossroads of service and leadership – where one is expected to not only to act with courage, proficiency, and resolve under pressure, but to help guide others through chaos with a calm, steady hand, and an unwavering devotion to duty.”

Wilson is currently assigned to Rescue Squad Company 1 on Prospect Avenue, and in his role as leader and the backbone of the company, is responsible for ensuring that the “vision, mission, and goals” of the department are carried out.

Apparatus Operator Ryan Kelleher is a fourth-generation firefighter, and has 16 years of fire service experience. “Ryan was the 2025 Firefighter of the Year for his selfless off-duty actions. Ryan frequently goes above and beyond helping the department as a teacher of technical rescue topics and as an assistant mechanic in the Maintenance Division,” Smith said. He has three children, is known for his “comedic timing,” and in his spare time enjoys “cool tractors and a variety of other snowmobiles and ATVs,” said Smith.

After several months of training, on Jan. 23, Truck 3 was officially rolled out and entered into service at Station 3 on New Britain Avenue in Elmwood.

The new tower ladder truck was ordered in 2023 and arrived in late 2025. The truck served as an example during a press conference held in West Hartford on Jan. 21, where representatives from West Hartford as well as chiefs from fire departments across the state brought attention to the rising costs of fire apparatus and other equipment.

The final cost of Truck 3 was $2.1 million – $500,000 more than was budgeted, and the extra cost was not because the town added any extra features that weren’t in the original plans.

The Town of West Hartford had to find the extra $500,000 in the budget for the new truck, which replaced a 2009 version that had cost $985,000.

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