Fire chief in Y.C. retires

The path to firefighting was not an unnatural one for Marc Boomgaarden.

His grandfather battled blazes with Marysville Fire Department, and a cousin, who fought fires with the Yuba City Fire Department, lured the former Yuba College athlete toward lights and sirens.

He rose quickly through the ranks to fire chief, a position he's held for 13 years. He retired Thursday after three decades of service as a firefighter.

Other fire agencies have tried to lure Boomgaarden to the Bay Area and Beverly Hills, but he remains firmly planted in Yuba City, where he plans to stay.

"Yuba City is where I started my career, and Yuba City is where I'll end my career," he said.

When he was first hired, Yuba City had one fire station that served about 17,000 people, Boomgaarden said. Today, five stations provide emergency services to more than 70,000 area residents.

One of the greatest changes came in 2001, when the Walton Fire Department merged with Yuba City. During his tenure, Boomgaarden helped expand services from basic firefighting and medical aid to water rescue, hazardous chemical response and advanced technical rescue.

"I wanted to leave it better than I got it, and I think I did that," Boomgaarden, 50, said.

During his years with the department, he also pitched in away from the station as an educator, athlete and community volunteer.

He helped create the Yuba City Fourth of July Kids Parade, coached Little League and youth soccer, and mentored through a career guidance program.

City Manager Steve Jepsen said Boomgaarden is the best chief he has ever worked with.

"In Marc's case, it's actually being part of the fabric of the community and doing what's right for your friends and neighbors," Jepsen said.

Transitioning into civilian life may take some time, but Boomgaarden said he is looking forward to it.

"I'm going to transition from Marc Boomgaarden the fire chief to Marc Boomgaarden the regular guy around town," he said, smiling.

On Monday, he wants to walk his twins, Michael and Kyle, age 10, to school at Butte Vista Elementary. His 15-year-old son, Cameron, who gets up at 5:30 a.m. to lift weights before class at River Valley High School, is on his own, Boomgaarden said, eyes twinkling.

And his wife has a list of honey-dos.

For the first time in 30 years, he is looking forward to spending the holidays with Karyn and their three children, free from a pager, phone and radio.

He plans to visit his old work buddies at the fire stations around Yuba City, and wants to take up cross-country skiing.

Assistant Fire Chief Pete Daley will be interim chief until he is appointed or until the city opens the position to others.

Capt. Jay Bordenkircher has worked closely with Boomgaarden since the fire chief went on his first call with him 30 years ago. Together they created a mobile Fire Safety House, used to teach children about fire safety.

"When I first met him, he was like a shooting star," Bordenkircher said. "He was just aggressive and wanted to learn. He was going to be a leader."

And Boomgaarden was also a prankster, he said.

Bordenkircher will never forget one time at training in Monterey when he thought he was being attacked by seagulls. Only then did he turn around to find Boomgaarden good-naturedly tossing bits of his lunch above the captain's head to draw the birds into a frenzy.

"He definitely made working on shifts fun when he was commander," said Battalion Chief Gary Garrisi.

When Boomgaarden took the lead role, he maintained his sense of humor and down-to-earth nature, but he also embraced the opportunity to improve the department and turned to every employee for input, Garrisi said.

That's what made him such a great leader, said Garrisi, who has known Boomgaarden for 20 years .

"He's made a huge impact on my life and my career," he said. "It's really tough to see him go."

Contact Appeal-Democrat reporter Ashley Gebb at 749-4724 or agebb@appealdemocrat.com.