By Richard Kaufman
Sentinel Reporter
It was a day of celebration for the Greenwich Fire Department, as four members were promoted on Monday morning.
Brian Koczak was promoted from Deputy Chief to Assistant Chief, filling the position left by Robert Kick, who retired this fall. Eric Maziarz went from lieutenant to deputy chief, and firefighter Greg Sinapi was promoted to lieutenant. Additionally, the department recognized Lt. Mike Wilson, who was promoted in April but didn’t have a ceremony due to crowd restrictions and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The promotional ceremony was the first for GFD Chief, Joseph McHugh, who has been on the job for just over 40 days.
“We’ve had some incidents and fires [since I started], and over this time, I’ve seen what a great organization we have before us here at the Greenwich Fire Department,” McHugh told a socially distant crowd in the apparatus garage of GFD headquarters. “I feel that these promotions will bring this department in an even better direction. I’m looking forward to working with Eric, Brian, Mike and Greg. They’re all great human beings and great fire officers. They’re going to serve this department and town admirably.”
McHugh added that most people don’t understand what it takes to be promoted in the fire service. He mentioned the many sacrifices that both the firefighters and their families make. He recalled his own experience when he was rising through the ranks of the FDNY.
“There’s a big sacrifice everybody makes in order to achieve these promotions. You should all be very proud,” he said.
First Selectman Fred Camillo, who is also the town’s Fire Commissioner, administered the oaths. He spoke briefly at the beginning of the ceremony.
“This is a very important day here, for the Town of Greenwich and the Fire Department, and for the administration under Chief McHugh. Congratulations to Brian, Eric, Mike and Greg. If you add up their years of experience, it’s a lot,” Camillo said. “More importantly, you have our thanks for those many years of service, and even more importantly, we look forward to many, many more years of service to the Town of Greenwich.”
The new leadership in the department is now firmly in place with Koczak’s promotion.
A veteran of the GFD for 23 years, Koczak has worked his way up the ranks, as he was promoted to lieutenant in 2006, and then to deputy chief in 2010, where he has been the shift commander on Group 1 ever since. He’s also been an Incident Commander for many fires and incidents since 2010. He went to the National Fire Academy from 2014-2018, and completed the executive fire officer program.
Koczak graduated magna cum laude from the University of New Hampshire in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in fire science. His fire career began with the North Madison Volunteer Fire Department in 1991, where he currently lives and still serves as a volunteer.
McHugh said Koczak has been “instrumental” in using a lot of the technology the GFD has, such as firehouse software and a storm damage tracing system that allows units to report storm damage from a mobile device. Koczak also leads the GFD’s apparatus purchasing committee.
Koczak thanked his family and fellow volunteers from Madison, who drove down for the ceremony. He also thanked the GFD, and former Assistant Chief Robert Kick, and former Chief Peter Siecienski.
The Assistant Fire Chief is the department’s top administrator, and is responsible for handling things like personnel issues, planning and budgeting.
Regardless of the position, public service is the aspect of fire services that Koczak enjoys the most.
“When it comes down to it, whether it’s this position or a firefighter on the floor, in the end it’s all about public service,” he said. “I think the satisfaction of public service is important. While my hands aren’t actually dealing with the public right now, everything that I do trickles down to the service that we do. I’m just doing it in a different way.”
One of Koczak’s goals as Assistant Chief is to build the rapport between career and volunteer firefighters in town. During his official appointment last week during the Greenwich Board of Selectmen meeting, Camillo stressed the importance of the two groups collaborating.
“I think that over the years I’ve established a good relationship with both career and volunteer members. My goal is going to be to help bridge any gaps we have between the two factions,” Koczak said on Monday. “I’m going to spend a lot of time with them. I think my experience as a volunteer in Madison definitely helps me relate; I understand what makes a volunteer tick. I look forward to using those experiences to guide me.”
The relationship with McHugh is also important to Koczak.
“I think we’re poised to make great change,” he added. “Like with any relationship, you’re going to do better if you get along. I think that he respects my opinion, I respect his opinion. He’s got great ideas, I think I have some pretty great ideas. If we can mold all those together and execute them, I think it’s going to be good for the department.”
Maziarz now fills the deputy chief role previously held by Koczak.
When he was hired in 2003, Maziarz immediately sprang into action at the Davis Avenue fire, where he was one of three firefighters to exit a third floor window after fire came up the stairs after him. Although he was out of work for the next four months, he used hard work and dedication to become a lieutenant in 2015, where he was assigned to Engine 1, Group 4.
Maziarz has served on many committees, and was named as the 2018 Greenwich Chamber of Commerce Firefighter of the Year, for his heads up action on a surge of accidents on the Merritt Parkway. The area on the Merritt was eventually paved by the state, and the number of accidents was reduced.
Maziarz said he’s excited to work under the leadership of McHugh and Koczak. He said the department has come a long way since he first started working in Greenwich.
“When I first started as a firefighter, some of the positions that we’re promoting to today didn’t even exist. We didn’t have deputy chiefs, and one of the lieutenant positions didn’t exist either,” Maziarz said. “I think each time we promote someone new into those positions, it’s a real testament to how far we’ve come as a department.”
Prior to joining the GFD in 2005, Sinapi was a police officer with the Greenwich Police Department. Sinapi’s fire career began as a volunteer in Newtown, Conn., and he’s currently certified as a hazmat technician and trained and certified in trench and confined space rescue. He’s also a rescue diver and Connecticut Fire Investigator. As a lieutenant, Sinapi will remain on Group 3.
Sinapi thanked his family, friends and colleagues for their support over the years. His wife, Jennifer, helped pin his lieutenant’s badge on.
On Monday, the GFD recognized Lt. Mike Wilson, who was promoted in April but didn’t receive a public ceremony because of COVID-19.
Firefighting runs in Wilson’s blood, as his father is a retired firefighter from Bridgeport, and his grandfather was a retired lieutenant from Stratford. Wilson is a certified Firefighter I and II, and a certified hazmat technician, trained in confined space and trench rescue. He is also an Emergency Medical Technician.
Wilson recalled McHugh’s comments about the sacrifices firefighters have to make, and he thanked his family for their support during the many hours of studying that’s needed for promotion. Wilson’s wife, Gabriella, helped pin the badge.
For photos, be sure to check out this Friday’s Greenwich Sentinel.
