Gary Corbet admits he got a little emotional when he wrote his retirement memo and when he delivered it to his Roanoke Rapids firefighters.

It was the group that caused him this emotion. “The distance we’ve traveled,” the fire chief, who is retiring in September, said Tuesday. “There’s been some bumps in the road. I think they learned a little bit about me and I learned a lot about them.”

Through those bumps there was always compromise but when it came time to fight fires, “Everyone realized the purpose is to serve the citizens of Roanoke Rapids. There may be bickering but we always go out as a family. It’s been incredible; it’s been awe-inspiring. For the most part they’ve been supportive and adaptive.”

Firefighting has always been in Corbet’s blood and in his family. He was a fire chief in Middletown, New Jersey.

Corbet, far right, watches during a training session.

It was while in Franklin, Tennessee, where he was a training and safety officer, that he decided he wanted to be a chief. “The opportunities for promotion weren’t all that prevalent,” he said.

Corbet has been a firefighter since he was 18. “It’s just been what I’ve done. My dad was fire chief in Middletown. My brother was fire chief on 9/11. Two other brothers were firefighters and so were nieces and nephews. I’ve grown up around the firehouse. I’ve really enjoyed the camaraderie.”

He went to college to become a high school teacher. During practice teaching, however, “I finally realized I didn’t like doing that,” and returned to firefighting.

“I think the best memory was when I first served as assistant chief in Middletown and my dad was still there. He was very proud.”

Corbet with Kenneth Hollowell during a council meeting.

The worst was a three-fatality fire. “I’m came back and offered my job back to the chief.”

Instead, he stayed and studied those fires. “You can’t put it out of your mind. You have to realize what you can and can’t do.”

His most important accomplishment, he said, was never losing a firefighter and never having one sustain a serious injury on the job. “It’s important that they go home.”

At 62, Corbet is now ready for retirement. He thought about waiting later but things fell into place and he and his wife found a place in Myrtle Beach. “I always dreamed of retiring to a place where I had palm trees in my yard.”

During last year's tornado.

That is essentially what has happened and in retirement he will be learning or relearning golf. “When I used to play I was terrible.”

Just as he got emotional in telling his men he was retiring, there will be emotion during retirement. “I think the biggest thing will be being around the firehouse and being with the guys and having that camaraderie.”