Greg Fish sworn in as Glendale’s fire chief

Greg Fish was sworn in as chief of the Glendale Fire Department Tuesday afternoon as city officials recognized him as a department veteran who “leads with his heart.”

Fish joined the Glendale agency in 1987 as a firefighter, moving up through the ranks to captain in 1998 and battalion chief in 2007. The Sun Valley native — who has strong ties to Glendale having attended Glendale Community College where he later taught fire science for about six years — has extensive experience training new firefighters.

One of his goals is to recruit more people from the local community to work for the department, he said, adding that he plans to put on an academy next year.

After reciting his oath of office, Fish thanked a number of people, including the men and women of the fire department.

“This is not about me, it’s all about you and giving it back to you,” he said.

As a leader in the fire service, Fish followed in the footsteps of his late father, who served as a Los Angeles fire captain.

“He always wanted to make his dad proud,” said Fish’s wife, Maureen, who attended the swearing-in ceremony with their four daughters and other family members.

Six candidates were interviewed for the position, and that Fish — who has spent his whole career in Glendale — was chosen sends a positive message to the rank-and-file and maintains stability within the department amid recent retirements, said Glendale Firefighters Assn. President Chris Stavros.

Stavros, a fire captain, was on the interview panel during the hiring process, which began earlier this year after former Fire Chief Harold Scoggins left to head the Seattle agency.

“The Glendale Fire Department is a family — I think we hired somebody that’s in the family,” Stavros said of Fish. “He’s doing all the right things.”