Former Fountain fire chief, Jerry Chancellor, passes away Saturday.

Jerry Chancellor

Former Fountain fire chief, Jerry Chancellor, passes away Saturday.

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief.

FOUNTAIN — Jerry Chancellor, 76, former chief of Fountain Area Fire Department, died Saturday evening, June 5, 2021. Jerry was an icon.

Jerry had been on Fountain Area Fire Department for 58 years, currently serving longer than any other local firefighter. He joined the department on March 8, 1963 just after graduating from Mason County Eastern High School. He served many years as department chief. After stepping down as chief he continued on the department, alongside his wife, Shirley, one of the first female firefighters/medical first responders in Mason County.

Jerry lived and breathed the fire service. He once said in an interview that he joined to serve his neighbors. I remember him talking to me, when I first became a firefighter in the mid-90s, about the sacrifice it takes to be an on-call (volunteer) firefighter. He talked about the too-numerous to count special family events he and Shirley had missed over the years, in the service of their community — putting others above themselves.

In recent years, Jerry was instrumental in organizing the annual Michigan State Police Trooper Paul Butterfield memorial service, held on the anniversary of Butterfield’s tragic death on Custer Road in September. Jerry was also a major part of raising funds and planning the sculpture in Fountain that pays tribute to the community’s lumbering roots.

A full obituary will appear on MCP later in the week.

Please consider helping to fund local news. Mason County Press and Oceana County Press are available for free thanks to the generous support of our advertisers and individuals who support our service. Click on the PayPal donation button located on the top right of our website. 

This story is copyrighted © 2021, all rights reserved by Media Group 31, LLC, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454. No portion of this story or images may be reproduced in any way, including print or broadcast, without expressed written consent.

As the services of Media Group 31, LLC are news services, the information posted within the sites are archivable for public record and historical posterity. For this reason it is the policy and practice of this company to not delete postings. It is the editor’s discretion to update or edit a story when/if new information becomes available. This may be done by editing the posted story or posting a new “follow-up” story. Media Group 31, LLC or any of its agents have the right to make any changes to this policy. Refer to Use Policy for more information.