Portage WI Chief Celebrates 40 Years as Firefighter

After 40 years and counting of serving the local community, Portage Fire Chief Clayton Simonson Jr. believes any fire department’s success is built through a continuous team effort.

“You surround yourself with good firefighters, because without them, you’d be nothing,” Simonson said of the top job. “They make me what I am. They’ve got my back.”

Several police officers, city officials and fellow firemen stopped by the fire station Friday to congratulate Simonson on his firefighting career that’s spanned four decades. Friday was the anniversary of his hiring in1979. He became chief 15 years ago.

He’s also the second man by the name of Clayton Simonson to become the Portage fire chief. His father, Clayton Simonson Sr., led the department when he first started working there.

“My dad said, ‘You aren’t getting any breaks from me,’ and I didn’t,” Simonson told City Administrator Shawn Murphy at the casual Friday celebration involving sausage pizza — Simonson’s favorite.

“So, in 40 years, what’s your worst fire?” Murphy asked Simonson.

“The ones where Craig goes with me,” Simonson teased, as Fire Inspector Craig Ratz glanced over and smirked.

Jokes aside, Simonson said a huge fire in downtown Portage was one of the worst he has seen in recent memory. The Daily Register’s archives show a 2012 fire caused significant damages to multiple buildings.

Portage Police Chief Ken Manthey grew up with Simonson, living one block apart and often playing football or baseball with other friends. Years later, their lifelong friendship has carried over into realm of public service.

Simonson said when he became fire chief 15 years ago, he was able to turn to Manthey as a mentor of his own who could debrief him on some of the challenges that come with leading a local police or fire department.

Firefighters in general have a tough job, Simonson said. They’re often called away from family functions, sporting events and holidays to respond to fires, and training requirements have increased from once a month to 30 times a year.

Simonson said his wife covered for him at gatherings or waited patiently many times when he was called away on duty at a moment’s notice. She is his rock, he said.

This makes it hard to fill a roster and maintain a full team, due to the high demands and rigors of the job, such as carrying heavy equipment all the time.

“It’s a tough position,” Simonson said, saying recruitment has been the greatest challenge as chief.

But fortunately for firefighters, more modernized equipment is safer and more lightweight, increasing firefighters’ agility and their protections against carcinogens and other fire hazards, Simonson said.

Another useful change from the time he first started is that firefighters can now get text message alerts about fires in the community. Simonson recalled a moment where a firefighter checked his phone to see a fire alert that Simonson had missed because his pager’s volume was turned down.

Manthey said when responding to fires, police officers who sometimes arrive on scene first can relay information to incoming firefighters about the unfolding situations.

“We work together very closely,” Manthey said. “Giving that information to the fire department is crucial.”

Their camaraderie goes deeper still, as their fathers — Edward Manthey and Clayton Simonson Sr. — served together in the Portage Fire Department.

“I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps,” Simonson said.

Those local roots combined with a shared calling for public service are testaments to the Portage community’s strong ties, Manthey said, adding that Simonson cares deeply about his personnel and their families.

“He’s a very humble man,” Manthey said. “He does not like having any attention drawn to himself.”

Portage Fire Engineer Brian Bonovetz said Simonson treated his 40th anniversary with the department as just another working day.

“It’s just low key,” Bonovetz said, describing the chief as a friend and mentor with boundless experience. “Forty years. That’s dedication.”

Reflecting on the last 40 years in his office Friday, Simonson said between his 25 years as a paid on-call firefighter and 15 years and going as chief, his profession has been rewarding.

“I wouldn’t change anything,” Simonson said.

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