New Kennewick fire chief leads with ‘integrity’

New Kennewick fire Chief Vince Beasley lives his life by a simple motto: “Do the right things for the right reasons regardless of the consequences.”

It’s something the Pasco native had ingrained in him growing up one of 11 children. It’s something he has modeled his 32-year career with the Kennewick Fire Department after.

And it’s served Beasley well through the ranks and prepared him for his dream job as the department’s first African-American chief. He believes he also may be the first black fire chief in Eastern Washington.

“That to me is a huge responsibility,” he said. “I don’t take that lightly.”

The announcement to promote the Pasco High School graduate to chief came in late October, and Beasley was officially sworn in earlier this month. He replaces former Chief Neil Hines who will stay on with the department as operations chief and project manager.

After college, Beasley took a job delivering mail in the Hanford area and his route included a stop at a firehouse, he said. One day the chief spotted Beasley checking out the fire trucks and recruited him.

Beasley joined the Kennewick Fire Department in 1982 and worked his way up to lieutenant five years later. Soon he made captain and managed the crew at Station 62 before being promoted to battalion chief in 2003.

Four years later, he was offered the fire chief’s position in Wenatchee. He was chosen from six finalists, but turned it down because it wasn’t a good fit, he said.

The decision to stay with Kennewick eventually paid off when his ability to work with people and his lead-by-example mentality earned him the chief’s position.

“The strength of any organization is the people,” Beasley said. “I am fortunate to work with the most skilled people. My job is to listen and understand their needs....”

Now it’s time for the father of two to ensure the Kennewick fire agency remains a respected organization, he said.

Beasley intends to continue strengthening already collaborative relationships with other fire and law enforcement agencies around the Tri-Cities. He wants his department to always be professional, hard working and connected to the community.

Beasley wants to model the fire department after the success of the Kennewick Police Department under Chief Ken Hohenberg. He said the police department is a good community partner and goes above and beyond the call of duty with citizens.

And Hohenberg has opened the doors to the police station to Beasley and his staff. Beasley and Hines will now work out of a wing of the station dedicated to the fire department.

“I think it’s something people across the nation should look at,” Beasley said.

Beasley also is optimistic a new data analysis position will help make the department more efficient. Tri-City police departments use analysts to track crime stats and other useful data. Beasley hopes the new analyst, who could possibly start by mid-January, will do some of the same things for the fire department.

Hohenberg called himself one of Beasley’s “biggest fans” and said he appreciates the work Beasley does in the community away from the fire station.

“I have always been impressed with his natural leadership ability, along with the people skills he brings,” Hohenberg said. “You can always judge a good leader by how he treats others. I would describe Chief Beasley as a selfless leader. Other people want to follow selfless leaders.”

Beasley talked recently about using his position as chief to influence young people in the community and to help others realize barriers can be broken.

Beasley — a talented basketball player for the Bulldogs in the mid-70’s — has helped out with Pasco’s hoops program in order to mentor youth.

Beasley said his longtime wife Evoria has helped get him where he is today.

But when Beasley was asked to talk about himself and the type of leader he plans to be, the chief paused for a moment. Then he came back to his life motto and values.

“I want to be inspiring, encouraging and have the ability to motivate others,” he said. “But above all is integrity.”

This story was originally published December 27, 2014 at 10:00 PM with the headline "New Kennewick fire chief leads with ‘integrity’."