After more than 20 years of service to the Escalon Fire Department, Ryan Burr has earned a promotion to Battalion Chief.

His formal badge pinning and promotion ceremony was hosted at the Coley Avenue fire station on Thursday morning, July 23.

There were some special guests on hand for the event, including several members of Burr’s family, from his mom, his wife and daughter, his in-laws, and more.

Also, San Joaquin County District 5 Supervisor Robert Rickman and his aide Maria Valenzuela were in attendance, along with representatives of the Escalon Police Department, Escalon Community Ambulance, Ripon Fire Department and the Escalon Fire District Board.

Welcoming the crowd, Escalon Fire Chief Rick Mello remembered Burr being a member of the last class he helped teach at the Ripon Fire Academy, an academy that demanded plenty of its recruits, the chief said.

“It’s kind of cool that in my career, there are a lot of young guys that I’ve helped get their start,” Chief Mello said. “We hired him as a firefighter, then he promoted to engineer and now he’s a Battalion Chief.”

Burr takes over as the B shift Battalion Chief, with engineer Dylan Criteser his assigned crew member.

Supervisor Rickman presented a special Certificate of Recognition in honor of Burr’s promotion, thanking him for his continued service.

For his part, Burr said he would keep his remarks short while standing at the podium, thanking all of those that came out to help him celebrate.

“I appreciate you guys being here,” he told the crowd, offering a special thanks to his wife Tiffany and daughter Taylor for “putting up with” him and the crazy life of a firefighter.

Burr began with the Escalon Fire Department on Jan. 23, 2003 and now, some 23 years later, has achieved the Battalion Chief role he has been working toward for a long time.

“This is a small town, where I went to high school,” he noted following the ceremony. “I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do after school. A friend of mine was a volunteer here, got me involved and I loved every second of it.”

Having filled multiple roles for the department over the years, Burr said there really was never an urge to move on to a larger community with a bigger department.

“The reason I choose to stay in this town is the people here,” he explained. “You don’t get people like you do in Escalon … they’re a different breed, in the greatest way.”

It’s also the chance to make a difference, as well as the family atmosphere, that continues to be important to him.

“Not only is it about helping people, I think just about every firefighter says that,” Burr added, “but the camaraderie of the guys in this department is, bar none, some of the best.”