Odenton Volunteer Fire Company Awardee

On June 18, 2024, Karen Willman received the John E. “Sunny” Rose, Jr. Memorial Training Award for 2024. This award recognizes the individual completing the most training hours in Maryland during the award year.

Karen joined the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company in October 2021, initially as an administrative member. She served on the Maps Committee and the Grants and Corporate Support Committee and participated in the fundraisers and community events. As she got more involved in the fire company’s activities, she was encouraged to start firefighter training. In 2022 she completed 194 hours of certified training and was cleared to serve as a probationary firefighter in December 2022.

Karen continued to pursue an active training program in 2023. She completed courses for a total of 236 certified hours in 2023.

As a result of her training and dedication, Karen is now a Firefighter I and Ambulance Attendant on the Anne Arundel County Fire Department Volunteer Riding Database. In 2023, she worked 85 duty shifts for a total of 674 hours and responded to 176 fire calls and 51 ambulance calls. She will soon start working on getting cleared as an ambulance driver to further enhance her value to the organization.

The fire company is very fortunate to have enthusiastic and committed members like Karen to maintain the vitality of the organization. She is very conscientious in the performance of her duties and is always striving to learn more and do more to help the fire company and the community.