By NATALIE GALLENTI
STEPHEN Hirt has been a permanent fixture at the Melton Fire Brigade for half a century.
He has seen men and women come and go and has made a lot of great mates along the way, but his greatest achievement has been helping out the community he loves.
Mr Hirt was born and bred in Melton and can recall when there were only 500 residents and two sets of traffic lights throughout the entire area.
The 70-year-old began fighting fires with his father on the family’s six acres of land and remembers the first fire truck he drove.
“My first fire truck was a billy cart with a four gallon drum with stirrups in it,” Mr Hirt recalled.
“There were only 500 people in Melton and everyone was a volunteer with the fire brigade.”
In 1962, he became an active volunteer and in his 50 year tenure has held the rank of captain and received numerous medals for his outstanding work, including the Australian Fire Service Medal.
But Mr Hirt admitted all the accolades in the world do not compare to the satisfaction one gets from doing a job well and making a difference in people’s lives.
“I don’t do it for the rewards, you get your reward in yourself when you do the job properly but it makes me feel proud, proud to be part of an organisation that does so much for people.”
Like all firefighters Mr Hirt has witnessed profound tragedy that he will never forget.
“There have been a lot of incidents that you’ll never forget until the day you drop off the perch.
“Some of the road accidents you go to you never forget that, especially with children, they stay with you for the rest of your life.”
And it seems fighting fires is in the blood for the Hirt family, with eldest son Jason following in his father’s footsteps and becoming the Senior Station Officer at the Melton Fire Brigade. Wife Melva has also volunteered countless years to the brigade and to the wider Melton community.
“Once you’re in it it’s like any other community based organisation, it gets in your blood. We were very community minded in the early days, always planting trees and cleaning up.”
The keen Western Bulldogs supporter was also a member of the Melton Historical Society and helped establish blue light discos. He is a life member of the Melton Football Club and Melton Cricket Club.
“A busy person always finds time. I still try and do my bit and so does Melv, if anyone is in need of help we’re there.”
