THROUGH THE RANKS: Victor Young retires as fire chief in Baldwin Co.

Published 2:30 pm Saturday, January 18, 2025

For the last 35 years, Victor Young has gone above and beyond to help residents of Milledgeville and Baldwin County in any way he could.

The longtime dedicated firefighter rose through the ranks during his distinguished career to eventually be named Baldwin County’s first Black fire chief in 2019. After serving in that position ever since, Young decided to retire this year.

As he was true to his word, on Friday, Jan. 10, Young was honored with a retirement reception at fire headquarters on Allen Memorial Drive.

Asked how he felt about being honored, he said he was humbled by it.

“I’m a person who’s a giver, and it’s always been hard for me to receive,” Young told The Union-Recorder. “To see that being done for me, I was just overwhelmed. I’m just not used to that sort of thing. I like seeing other people happy and smiling. For me to receive this honor, I was in awe.”

Young said he was raised to do whatever he could to help others.

The night was one of the most special occasions of his life.

“I just did what I could do to try and embrace it,” Young said, noting he deeply appreciated his family, close friends and his firefighter brothers and sisters being there for the special occasion. “But again, it was very difficult for me. It was all new for me.”

Young said he has always liked being in the background and seeing others recognized for jobs well done.

“I like seeing others in the forefront and them getting the accolades, not myself,” Young said. “What I’ve done has never been about me. I’ve just done what I could to help other people in times of need. It’s all been about serving others.”

At his retirement dinner, the beloved fire chief was thanked for his years of service as a firefighter by several local elected officials, including longtime Sheriff Bill Massee and Commissioner Sammy Hall.

Several fellow firefighters also attended and wished Young well in retirement and told him how much he would be missed.

A lot of major accomplishments happened within the county fire department under Young’s leadership.

He got full-time firefighters assigned to each of the county’s fire stations except for the Meriwether Station. Young believes that will come about later this year.

Firefighters and deputies with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office also formed a partnership for a dive team for the first time in the county’s history.

“This is something that has been needed in our county for many, many years, and I’m glad to see that we were able to make that happen,” Young said.

At the end of the retirement reception, as is the long-standing tradition among those in fire service, Young was chauffeur-driven to his home by a fellow firefighter in a fire engine.

But it wasn’t just any fire engine. It was Baldwin County’s first purchased fire truck, a 1948 apparatus, restored to its original look and freshly painted bright red.

Young said it was a gift he wanted to help give back to the county for officials investing in him and believing in him when he was started working as a firefighter back in 1989.

His career got started under the leadership of Chief Roscoe Simpson, who had that particular fire truck purchased.

Young went on to serve under retired county fire chiefs Willie Simpson, Smoky Veal, Troy Reynolds and Steve Somers.

“It was my first time actually riding in that particular truck,” Young said. “I helped facilitate the truck being restored, but I had never driven or ridden in the truck.”

Young said it felt great riding in the vintage apparatus.

“It was a real honor to have ridden in the first fire truck that Baldwin County ever had,” Young said.

Now that he has retired from firefighting, Young said his wife has prepared a honey-do list for him.

He also plans to assist his wife in her Northside Portable John business. He will also be busy tending to his rental properties.

Even though he’s now officially retired from fire service, he still wakes up at 6 a.m.

“I haven’t changed that routine,” Young said. “I get up, get dressed and get about in the community.”

Only a couple of things have really changed since his retirement. They include no longer having to wear a uniform and no longer attending public gatherings and government and command staff meetings.

As a district representative with the Georgia Firefighters Association, Young still plans to be actively involved with the organization.

“I want to continue to help firefighters with the pension fund and help other firefighters who retire across the state,” Young said.