Dawn of a New Day: Mark Day Steps up as Fire Chief

Arsonists and open flame enthusiasts beware – there is a new fire chief in town! Former Assistant Fire Chief Mark Day has stepped up to take the reins as Fire Chief after his brother and former Fire Chief Tom Day officially retired.

Beginning his firefighting career in 2007, Mark Day has been part of the Salem and Washington Township Fire Department family for nearly two decades, and he describes it as one of the most important things for the community that he is part of.

Fire Chief Mark Day

“It’s really the ultimate ‘giving back’ for me. You’ve talked with me before, so you know I’m involved in several different things, but this is really the ultimate community-involved item that I can come up with,” said Day. “The guys here take great pride in being able to serve their community in this aspect and helping people on their worst days. Being there for people when they need us is the biggest thing for me.”

Day went on to explain that the department is a mixed bag of sorts.

“We’re a combination department. We have ten guys that are paid, and then we have a roster of up to 20 volunteers that do it. The volunteers get reimbursed a little bit for their callbacks, but this job has never been about the money. I don’t think it ever has been about the money for anybody,” Day remarked. “You could go to some bigger departments and make a lot more, but then you wouldn’t be protecting your hometown. At the end of the day, we’re helping the members of our community. That’s really the be all, end all.”

Day began his career in 2007 as a lieutenant for about 12 years before transitioning to captain for a little over a year. He then was the assistant chief for roughly one and a half years before moving to the fire chief position to continue where his brother left off.

“It was a pretty quick ascent in my career after Mike Mead, Roger Pennington, Ron Wilcox, and Tom Day all retired. So, in a short period of time, we lost those four guys who had more than 120 combined years of experience. Each of them had certain qualities that made them stand out differently from each other, but they all brought something great to the department. I think they all retired in a span of two years,” he said.

Day continued by saying he still maintains a great relationship with the four men, and he considers them a wonderful resource when it comes to advice.

“I can always pick up the phone and ask any of those guys for assistance or questions about anything. So, that’s a very valuable asset. They’re a wealth of knowledge for certain,” Day added.

He continued by mentioning that he and his brother are very different – but not in a negative way.

“You could talk to any of these guys in here (the fire department) and they’d probably tell you that we are very different,” said Day. “I am a very ‘put my arm around you and tell you what we did wrong and how it’s not going to happen again’ type of person. You get one strike – there’s no three strikes with me. I am very structured, very black and white. In any line of work, there are going to be conflicts, but I’m not afraid of conflict at all. Tom didn’t necessarily like conflict too much. He liked to sort of massage issues a little more to resolve conflicts. I’m a bit more black and white about it. Just like any siblings, there are stark similarities, and there are stark differences too.”

Day explained that the transition process in terms of leadership changes in fire departments is generally smooth. The State of Indiana has a “drop program” where you select a specific date to begin the retirement process.

“Basically it freezes your retirement,” he said. “So, you can keep working for the city, but they take your retirement checks from that date forward and throw them into a fund. At the end of your retirement period, they give you that lump sum. We’ve known Tom was going to retire on an exact date, so the transition started probably right after Mike Mead retired back in March or February of 2024.”

Throughout history, the Salem Fire Department has seen many fire chiefs come and go. They have all made alterations – big and small – to the department in the hope of better serving our community, and Fire Chief Mark Day is no exception.

“The fire department has been successful for a long time, but I think a lot of that success has come from people that have worked in the building. Every chief wants to do certain organizational things differently and respond to things a little bit differently, but my focus right now is to fine tune some things and get a little more structure,” said Day.

"We’ve always been good about getting in the community as far as working with kids on fire prevention and things of that nature. But, we’re now doing more walk-arounds because it’s beneficial for businesses – especially the larger businesses like factories or any kind of manufacturing,” he added. “For instance, doing walk-throughs with them and getting a good understanding of the surroundings. Once we get our feet wet here in a little bit, we will be doing community engagement with businesses probably at least once a week. Basically just re-familiarizing ourselves with the buildings and asking them if they need anything from us.”

One sizable change that Chief Day is pushing for is a UTV (utility task vehicle). This will help give them better access to the new Monon trail.

“There is about 14 miles of that trail that is not easily accessible for a large truck. That’s something we’re working on, so we can better help citizens and visitors because you know there are going to be heart attacks, there are going to be medical occurrences, there are going to be broken bones. Somebody is going to flip a cigarette out, start a wildfire, and we are going to have trouble accessing that. Things of that nature. So, that’s one of our biggest goals at the moment,” said Day.

One might think that being the fire chief is any firefighter’s goal, but that is not necessarily the case with Chief Mark Day. It was more so simply an opportunity that presented itself to him.

“Whether it’s running the real estate office, being on the school board, or anything else I’ve done, I’ve never really made leadership my goal. I’ve always just grown into it, I suppose. I am not trying to sound arrogant by any means, but I’ve just naturally moved into positions like that. I try to remain pretty humble, and I don’t like being in the limelight very much. To me, if you strive to be in a leadership position in the fire service, you probably are not the right guy to do so,” he said. “Not that I necessarily want to be in this position, but I feel like I’m called to do it. The good Lord puts in front of me what he wants me to do. That’s the way I try to live my life.

“It has taken me a long time in life with a lot of pitfalls and valleys to get to this point where I try to take advantage of each opportunity that comes my way,” added Day.

Mark Day is not one to often give much thought to his legacy or how he will be remembered, but what he does hope for is very simple: he hopes to be remembered as an honest man.

“One of my favorite quotes that I have heard is, ‘what people think about me is none of my business.’ But of course, people are going to make it your business,” laughed Day. “I would just like people to remember me as being an honest, fair person that treated people well and had the community and the best interest of others always in mind.”

Looking forward, Day has high hopes for the future of the department and the future of the community as a whole. He hopes to be a valuable asset to those in need.

“I just look forward to being part of the long history of a department that has a lot of integrity and has had a lot of good people come through it. I look forward to being part of the leadership that has gotten it to the point it is at now. I want the community to know that if they ever need anything at all, we are always here for them,” Day concluded. “We want to be a resource for people no matter what they need.”

This week marks the official beginning of Chief Mark Day’s leadership at the Salem/Washington Township Fire Department, and he is certainly up to the task. As he steps into his new role as fire chief, he brings with him not only years of experience but also a deep commitment to serving our community with both integrity and heart. While the idea of positions of leadership may not be his driving force, his steady rise through the ranks and his unwavering dedication to the people of Washington County make it clear that he is exactly where he is meant to be. As the torch is passed from one brother to another, the department remains in capable hands and is guided by a leader who values service above recognition.

So, please join me in lending a warm welcome to the new head of the Salem Fire Department: Fire Chief Mark Day!