Chief Karen Bendel [2015]
When Karen Werfelman joined the Baldwin Junior Fire Department following her fourteenth birthday she never anticipated that she would one day end up in the Chiefs Office. Rather her mindset was to help the community. Inspired by her father Bill, an Ex-Chief of the Baldwin Fire Department and a forty plus year member, Karen knew that the fire service was something she was passionate about from an early age. Not long after turning eighteen [the age that most departments begin to accept members] Karen completed the application process and in the summer of 1992 became the newest member of Baldwin’s First Aid Company. She has been a member of First Aid Company ever since with now over twenty-two years of service and dedication.
In her time as a member of First Aid Company she became the department’s first female Captain in 2003 and was again elected as Captain in 2007 and 2010. Upon the completion of her 2010 term as Captain, Karen ran for the position of Third Deputy Chief but was defeated by Craig Yanantuono – whom she has a long lasting friendship with. Despite the loss in the 2010 election Karen remained determined. In 2011 she again ran for the position of Baldwin Third Deputy Chief and was this time successful. Beginning in January of 2012 through December of 2014 Karen Werfelman served as Baldwin’s Third, Second, and First Deputy Chief. This past December she was elected as the Chief of the Department – the first female chief in the one hundred and nineteen year history of the Baldwin Fire Department. It is worth noting that also during her rise through the ranks she married Stephen Bendel – a firefighter from the Oceanside Fire Department.
Baldwin Chief of Department Karen Bendel officially began her tenure on January 1st, 2015. For the year ahead her goals are simple: “To keep the department moving forward and keep training so we perform at our best. The ultimate goal is that everyone goes home to their families at the end of the day.” When asked what her favorite part of being a member of the Baldwin Fire Department has been Chief Bendel answered: “…the membership. At the end of the day it’s the people in your company and department that are there for you. There is a reason they call the fire service a brotherhood.”
Read MoreIn her time as a member of First Aid Company she became the department’s first female Captain in 2003 and was again elected as Captain in 2007 and 2010. Upon the completion of her 2010 term as Captain, Karen ran for the position of Third Deputy Chief but was defeated by Craig Yanantuono – whom she has a long lasting friendship with. Despite the loss in the 2010 election Karen remained determined. In 2011 she again ran for the position of Baldwin Third Deputy Chief and was this time successful. Beginning in January of 2012 through December of 2014 Karen Werfelman served as Baldwin’s Third, Second, and First Deputy Chief. This past December she was elected as the Chief of the Department – the first female chief in the one hundred and nineteen year history of the Baldwin Fire Department. It is worth noting that also during her rise through the ranks she married Stephen Bendel – a firefighter from the Oceanside Fire Department.
Baldwin Chief of Department Karen Bendel officially began her tenure on January 1st, 2015. For the year ahead her goals are simple: “To keep the department moving forward and keep training so we perform at our best. The ultimate goal is that everyone goes home to their families at the end of the day.” When asked what her favorite part of being a member of the Baldwin Fire Department has been Chief Bendel answered: “…the membership. At the end of the day it’s the people in your company and department that are there for you. There is a reason they call the fire service a brotherhood.”
