American Legion Recognizes Local Heroes

Sue Moen
Stuessy-Kuenzi American Legion Commander Steve Hodgson presented the Fireman of the Year award to Assistant New Glarus Fire Chief Peter Ott.
The American Legion wants to now recognize some other heroes of our community. Each year, local Legion posts are encouraged to recognize public safety personnel for their service to the community. While the program is also a competition that recognizes Law Officers, Firefighters, Emergency Medical Technicians and Enlisted Guardsman/Reservists at County, District, State and National levels, it is primarily a program which honors these folks for doing their job 24/7 and protecting the citizens of their community. This year Stuessy-Kuenzi Post #141 selected Peter Ott as Fireman of the Year, Burt Boldebuck as Law Officer of the Year, Michelle Kump as the EMT of the Year, and Alexander Atwell as the Enlisted Guardsman/Reservist of the Year.
Peter Ott is a 33-year member of the New Glarus Fire Department. During those years, Peter has served as a Lieutenant, Captain, and is now the Assistant Chief. Peter is a fourth generation family member to serve New Glarus as a Fireman.
Chief Burt Boldebuck is serving in his fourth year as the Chief of Police in New Glarus. He has been involved in law enforcement for 31 years. He is particularly active in programs his department has in place to protect and educate the youth of our community. A couple of examples are Halloween Safety and the D.A.R.E. program. Chief Boldebuck has also been honored as the American Legion Green County Law Enforcement Officer of the Year in Green County.
Michelle Kump is entering her 20th year of volunteering with the New Glarus Area EMS. Michelle has a great sense of caring and compassion towards her patients. With her years of dedication, she provides the knowledge and experience to lead others of her team when on calls.
Alexander Atwell is a Hospital Corpsman in the United States Navy Reserve. He returned in December from a seven-month deployment to Afghanistan as a convoy security corpsman in support of the Operation Enduring Freedom, with the US Marine Corp infantry. As a Naval Reservist, he volunteers as a Funeral Honors Duty Member, performing Honor Guard ceremonies for deceased former Navy sailors. His awards and achievements include: Army Achievement Medal, Navy Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Navy Reserve Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, Navy and Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, NATO ISAF Medal, Expert Rifle Ribbon, Expert Pistol Ribbon and Seabee Combat Warfare Insignia.