The retired Maryland State Fire Marshal, a member of the New Jersey Senate, the former Fire Chief of Washington, D.C. … the list goes on and on.
Many Hyattsville Volunteer Fire Department alumni have become leaders of the nation’s fire service and in many other areas of society. Here are some of alumni and what they’ve been up to. In addition, Countless HVFD alumni have gone on to successful careers as professional firefighters throughout the region and nation.
William Barnard
An HVFD Life Member, Bill retired from the Prince George’s County Fire Department as Lt. Col., and recently retired after serving four terms as the Maryland State Fire Marshal. 
Dennis Rubin
A former HVFD volunteer and line officer, Dennis is the former chief of Atlanta, GA, Norfolk, VA and Washington, D.C. He is currently a fire service consultant and author. 
Dr. David Icove
A former HVFD live-in, David currently professor at University of Tennessee, nationally-recognized expert in computer-aided arson pattern recognition.
Donald Eierman
Danny was the first career officer assigned to Co. 41 (now Co. 1), from 1967-1971. Spent 27 years with the PGFD and worked for Grace Industries selling firefighter accountability systems.
Fred Van Geuder
Starting as a Junior Fireman in the 1950’s, later being hired by the PGFD and returning to Co. 1 as Career Captain. Retired from PGFD in 1992 and currently works with the National Disaster Medical System.
Corey Mouer
An active local member in the late 80’s and early 90’s, Corey is now a Firefighter/Paramedic at the Seattle Fire Department.
Andy Levy
Andy, a Life Member and former Assistant Chief, is the Coordinator of MFRI’s North Central Region. He is a former instructor with the Iowa State University Fire Service Institute.
Stanley L. Poole
A former HVFD member and Hyattsville City career firefighter, Stanley retired from the Prince George’s County Fire Department as Major. He is past Chief of Frederick County (MD) Fire/Rescue.
Ronald Hassan
A former HVFD live-in and officer, Ron retired from PGFD as Battalion Chief and currently works for the Maryland Fire Rescue Institute.
Louis P. Alar
A life member and former Deputy Chief, Luke is the Director of Environmental Health & Safety at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
Nathan Vander Roest
A former live-in who currently serves on our Board, Nate serves as an Fire Protection Engineer at the Architect of the Capitol and owns his own fire protection firm, DVR Consulting, LLC.
William H. Muller III
Was a volunteer from 1969-70 prior to being hired by PGFD. Returned as Battalion Chief 4 for three years until his retirement in 1994.
Geoff Donahue
This former live-in member is currently the Chief of Emergency Response for the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE).
Jackson H. Gerhart*
Jack served as Deputy Chief of the HVFD in the late 1960’s and later retired from the DCFD after spending his entire career at Engine 17. When their quarters was renovated, it was dedicated to him. Shortly after his retirement, Jack died in the line of duty while fighting a fire with his hometown department in Chambersburg, PA. Jack was instrumental in driving our sister company relationships with the New Franklin and Waynesboro (PA) fire companies. Dennis Rubin often credits Jack as his mentor when he first went to work for DCFD as a firefighter.
David Berry
This former HVFD active member retired from the Anne Arundel County, Maryland as Battalion Chief.
David Borchardt
A former active member and line officer who started as a cadet at age 14, David recently retired as a Battalion Chief with the Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Department and is now Fire Code Compliance Manager at Montgomery County Fire/Rescue Office of the Fire Marshal.
Robert Alwang
A former active member and Captain, Robert retired from Montgomery County, Md. Fire/Rescue as Assistant Chief.
Robert J. Edwards
Bob, a past president and volunteer Lieutenant with the HVFD, is a retired Dade County, Florida police Sergeant and detective. He is a recognized expert and educator on police response to civil disturbances.
Dave Pullen
Dave, a life member and past lieutenant, now serves as the Safety and Fire Protection Engineer for the Baltimore/Washington Veteran’s Administration.
David Moltrup
The brother of Chief Emeritus Doc Moltrup, this HVFD Life Member recently retired from Montgomery County (MD) Fire/Rescue as a Captain with 38 years of service. David is also a nationally-recognized expert on forcible entry.
Tom Kean Jr.
A former HVFD member and Vice President, Tom is currently the Minority Leader in the New Jersey State Senate. He was a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in 2006. Tom is the son of former New Jersey governor Tom Kean Sr., who also headed the 9/11 Commission.
Tom Gardiner
A former HVFD live-in, Tom currently heads up Shirmer Engineering’s Altlanta office.
Herb Hasenpusch
A former HVFD local member, Deputy Chief & Board Member, Herb is now a Police Captain and District Commander for the Anne Arundel County Police Department’s Western District.
Ross Passman
An active volunteer from 1987-1992, Ross is currently the Director of Emergency Management for Anne Arundel County, where he is a Police Captain.
Dave Morgan
Dave, a member in the 80’s and early 90’s, is now an Assistant Vice President at BB&T Bank in Atlanta.
Dave Iannone Founder of Firehouse.com and FirefighterNation.com, two leading websites for the world’s fire service. He currently serves as CEO of First Arriving, a marketing and technology company for public safety.
John Cates
John, an active local EMS member from the 1970’s-1990’s, is now a Project Manager at DC Department of Employment Services.
Robert Baker
The former HVFD Deputy Chief and Board Chairman, Robert retired from DCFD as Battalion Chief.
J. Gordon Routley
A former HVFD live-in and former fire chief in Shreveport, LA, Gordon is a nationally-recognized fire service author and fire service safety expert, recently leading the Charleston Fire Assessment & Review Team.
Thomas Walters
A former HVFD live-in, Thomas served as the fire chief of Limerick Township Fire Dept. in Montgomery County, PA. where is he is now President.
Sarah Dorit Jacobson
Sarah was a local member in the 1990’s and 2000’s, she is currently an editor at Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Mark Smith
A live-in in the early 90’s, Mark was Admin Sgt. and later Fire Sgt. He currently serves as Fire Marshal for Alachua County (FL) Fire Rescue.
Gary Mayer
An active live-in from 1960-1963 while attending Maryland, did two tours in Vietnam before being hired by PGFD. He is presently working as an environmental engineering and VP with a consulting firm.
Chuck Story
A Life Member and former live-in, Chuck is now the Fire Chief of the Northmoreland Twp. Vol. Fire Co. and works for McCarthy Tire as the Corporate Operations and Safety Manager in Wilkes Barre Pa.
Rick Higgins
Rick is a Past President and line officer in the 1960’s into the 70’s beginning as a HVFD junior fireman in the 1950’s. After being employed by Chapel Opticians for over 25 years, he is now retired and living in The Villages, FL.
Ric Koonce
Ric was active for several years in the 70’s including a live-in summer before being hired by PGFD — he returned to Co. 1 on a career assignment and was Battalion Chief 4. He is now Assistant Professor and Program Head of Fire Science Technology at J. Sargent Reynolds Community College in Richmond, VA.
Matt Kovalakides
A DeMatha grad and member in the 90’s, Matt moved to Los Angeles to pursue a film career, becoming a popular online video and YouTube star and now serves as a Programming Strategist for YouTube/Google. Ironically, Matt grew up in the same University Park home where Google co-Founder Sergei Brin later lived, an experience described here.
Larry Preston
A former active member, Larry retired as a Lieutenant Colonel with the Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Department.
John DiRusso
John was a live-in in the 70’s while attending Maryland, retired from Federal service after 30 years as an Asst. Fire Chief and now serves as a fire inspector in Hyde Park, NY.
Richie Clemens
Richie was a career technician for PGFD assigned to Co. 1 (retiring as a Captain) and the inventor of the Clemens Hook. He got the patent for the Hook while working at Co. 1 and tested many prototype versions on our units.
Bill Carey
University Park resident and former HVFD Fire Lieutenant Bill Carey serves as News Editor for PennWell Public Safety, including FirefighterNation.com and JEMS.com.
