Mt. Kisco Fire Dept. Member Reaches 75 Years of Service to Community
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There is seemingly nothing that will deter Joseph Bronzino from volunteering for the Mount Kisco Fire Department.
Bronzino has responded to innumerable calls, all to serve the community and the department and its firefighters.
On Sunday, he was honored for 75 years of service at a celebratory lunch at Ristorante Lucia in Bedford.
Bronzino, 97, said it was the support he received from his wife and family that allowed him to reach his diamond jubilee, going out on calls during weekends, evenings, holidays and celebrations.
“My family, they kept me going,” Bronzino said shortly after the completion of a ceremony to honor him. “If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t be here, and I’m not talking about in life, but in sitting in this chair. They were always, always, always behind me.”
While it’s been many years since he has gone out on a call with the Mount Kisco Fire Police to the scene of a fire, Bronzino still makes sure he helps around the Green Street firehouse and to make the tasks easier for the other volunteers.
Bronzino, a Woodland Street resident, makes sure that he’s at the firehouse on Tuesdays for cleanup and will still head over there on other calls, often riding in his electric scooter when the siren sounds, said Phyllis Huff, one of his two daughters and three children.
Huff called her father an inspiration to everyone.
“He’s still at home on his own, still does things,” she said. “There’s a few things we’re working on but he’s still on his own.”
Bronzino, who is affectionately called “Juts” by those who know him well, has been with the department since April 1949. He answered an ad in a local newspaper for volunteers after he was discharged from the Navy. The fire department needed manpower for the Fire Police that was being established at the time to help firefighters direct traffic near fire scenes.
It’s been a way of life for Bronzino ever since.
For barely one-third of those years – 27 to be exact – Mario Muccioli, the current president of the Fire Police, has served with Bronzino.
“We’re grateful that we still have people like him still around,” Muccioli said. “He still comes to everything; he’s still part of committees with the Fire Police. He gives his input, comes around the firehouse. He does what he can do.”
Bronzino served as captain for the Fire Police from 1957 to 1959, and ascended to chief of the department for two years in 1970, the first member of that part of the department to hold the title.
Mayor Michael Cindrich, who attended Sunday afternoon’s celebration, said it’s hard to believe that he has been serving the department and the community for so long.
The mayor said he hopes that some of the department’s younger members can absorb some of his knowledge and experiences.
“It’s 75 years, basically, three-quarters of his life that he’s dedicated to the village, and it’s sincere dedication,” Cindrich said. “He’s not going out doing rescues or putting out fires (now), but he’s still at the firehouse every time the siren goes off.”
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
