Too much fun to quit

MORRISTOWN, Minn. — For dairy farmer Tim Boese, 18 years on the Morristown Fire Department have brought challenges and fun. He has been fueled to continue by a sense of camaraderie and a gradual growth in leadership.

“(I’ll quit) when it quits being fun,” Boese said. “Right now, it’s fun because people are starting to finally listen to me after being on so long. In the first three years, you don’t say anything. You just listen to all the old guys talk. … We got a really good group … right now.”

Boese milks 60 cows alongside his cousin, Matt Boese, and the two get assistance from their dads on the family farm near Morristown. The cousins also own a trucking business, raise beef cow/calf pairs and finish steers.

Boese joined the fire department Jan. 1, 2007. He is one of 23 members in the department. As a firefighter, he responds to numerous calls relating to fires, medical emergencies and car accidents. Boese has responded to around 60 calls through October of this year.

“I enjoy being involved in the community,” Boese said. “It’s something to give back.”

Boese is a captain on the fire department and president of the Morristown Firemen’s Relief Association. Over the years, he has held various positions at the department.

“(They say) ‘We need somebody to hold this position’ and I’m like, ‘Aah it can’t be that bad,’” Boese said.

One position he has chosen not to try for — though he has been asked by various people to consider it — is fire chief.

“I just can’t … because a chief is … solely responsible for the morale of the fire department,” Boese said. “You need to know what makes that person click. You need to know how to motivate them and get them to do stuff.”

Over his years of being a first responder, Boese said the call frequency has increased. The Morristown Fire Department encourages firefighters to respond to about 30% of the calls.

“When I first got on, there were fewer than 100 calls a year,” Boese said. “This year, we’re already over 200. That’s how much it’s increased. Ever since COVID, it just exploded.”

His dad, Ken, has made sacrifices and done extra work on the farm so Boese can respond to calls. Boese said he also could not be a firefighter without the support of his wife, Melissa.

When he first joined the fire department, he and his wife were new parents with a young baby. His absence put extra work on Melissa. Despite this, they grew the family over his tenure with the fire department.

“I’m already sacrificing (time with family) by being out here (on the farm),” Boese said. “Now you throw another thing in the deal. … You went from 100 calls, now you’re up to 200.”

The best calls to respond to are grass fires, Boese said.

“There’s no property damage,” he said. “Nobody’s losing their house, nobody’s getting hurt.”

To help limit calls, Boese advises replacing batteries in smoke detectors every six months. Many modern security systems will automatically call the fire department when the smoke alarm acts up, which can happen if the batteries are not fresh. Boese said another tip is making sure there is a fire extinguisher in the kitchen.

Over the years, Boese has had to respond to challenging situations that are difficult to process emotionally.

“Sometimes just sitting here talking … is coping,” he said. “Everybody copes differently. Somebody will cope with their wife and tell them; someone will just bottle it up, and then suddenly, they’ll just … break.”

Since Boese does trucking at night, he said he can visit with others in the department after challenging calls.

“They’ll call me, and … we’ll talk a little bit about the call, but then they’ll just talk about something else,” he said.

He said every firefighter has a breaking point. Some of the most challenging calls are those that hit close to home, such as responding to a medical issue of someone he knew or helping at a car accident where the youth involved reminds him of his kids.

“The coping is hard,” Boese said. “(For example) that (youth) accident on 60, I can’t unsee that. And the hardest part is now my kids are that age. It scares me some days.”

To get through tough moments, he often will find humor in them to cope. Sometimes, he said, the challenge is the uncertainty of what will be in front of him once he gets to the scene.

“The biggest thing with law enforcement and fire is you just don’t know (what you’re going into),” Boese said.

Boese said the difficult times and helping each other through those moments bind firefighters together.

“That camaraderie, it’ll never go away,” he said.