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Charleroi council honors longtime firefighter

By Mark Soroka for The 2 min read

CHARLEROI – For nearly 60 years, Robert Whiten Sr. has volunteered his time to fight fires.

“It’s been in my family’s blood for as long as I can remember. And I’m very proud of that,” said Whiten Sr., who has served as fire chief, assistant fire chief, captain, president, safety officer and chaplain for Charleroi Volunteer Fire Department over his 57 years.

Borough council members honored Whiten Wednesday at their meeting, thanking him for his service.

“We always hear about the bad things in town and we rarely hear about the people who are doing great things,” said council President Mark Alterici, noting Whiten has responded to upward of 8,000 calls. “It’s nice to honor those people like Robert who spend their lives serving the community.”

Washington County Commissioner Larry Maggi also congratulated Whiten on his service and presented him with a special certificate.

“This is an occasion we get to recognize something really special in the community,” said Maggi.

Whiten continues to volunteer, along with his son Robert Whiten Jr., who is the department’s chief, and his grandsons, Ian Whiten and Sean Robert Whiten.

In other business, council:

n Announced several upcoming events for April, including the annual Easter egg hunt on April 11, Student Government Day on April 15 and cleanup day on April 24.

n Approved closing the borough office on election day.

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