Forest Grove Fire & Rescue will have temporary chief

For two weeks, Forest Grove Fire & Rescue will have a temporary chief while Chief Jim Geering takes a vacation for a family wedding from Saturday, Aug. 9 through Aug. 23.

Geering told the Forest Grove Rural Fire Protection District board during a regular business meeting Wednesday, Aug. 6 that Division Chief of Operations Patrick Wineman would step in to fill the department's top spot while he was away.

The role will be familiar for Wineman, a decorated veteran of Forest Grove Fire & Rescue. Following the retirement of former Chief Michael Kinkade in 2021, Wineman stepped in as interim chief, serving in the role alongside Patrick Fale of Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue.

Through intergovernmental agreements, the two served in the interim as chief of five western Washington County fire districts and departments.

Wineman's interim tenure ended when current Chief Jim Geering began work on Nov. 17, 2021.

Prior to being hired by the city of Forest Grove, Geering worked his way through every rank at the Chula Vista Fire Department in Southern California in his 35 years there, according to Forest Grove Fire & Rescue.

He retired as fire chief there in 2020 before coming to Forest Grove the following year. He will return to Chula Vista Saturday, where his youngest daughter will marry a firefighter.

And should the groom-to-be read this story, let him breathe a sigh of relief: On the record, during a publicly recorded meeting of duly elected officials, Geering described his future son-in-law as "a good man."