MFD assistant chiefs retire after history-making careers
MILWAUKEE - Two Milwaukee assistant fire chiefs who made history are being honored as they head into retirement having served a combined 55 ½ years.
Sirens blared as husband-and-wife duo De Wayne Smoots and Sharon Purifoy-Smoots drove away from MFD headquarters Friday, June 23 – not to signal an emergency but to say "thanks" and "job well done"
"Even though you will compete against each other for things, you should never be competing against each other," De Wayne said.
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Together, the two became the first couple to hold two of the highest-ranked positions at the Milwaukee Fire Department.
"I’ve learned that, I don’t know all the stuff I think I know. I wanted to learn more about that from them," said MFD Chief Aaron Lipski.
Sharon Purifoy-Smoots and De Wayne Smoots
Dozens of proclamations from city and state officials only captured a small glimpse of the strides the Smoots' made in their careers.
"Struggles with a culture that makes it difficult for someone like De Wayne, and doubly difficult for someone like Sharon to walk in the door, to stay and to promote, and to exceed," said Lipski.
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Sharon defied all odds and made history as the state's first African-American woman to reach the assistant fire chief rank.
"I have learned a lot, I am going to take a lot with me," she said.
"For the rest of our career, in all honesty, she outranks me. She outranks me to this day," De Wayne said.
Sharon Purifoy-Smoots and De Wayne Smoots
De Wayne was crucial in bringing more people of color into the fire service to follow in his footsteps.
"They’ve been very important in moving this department forward," said Lipski. "Send them off with all the good stuff. Leave all the bad stuff, we will stay here, we will sort it out."
The couple is retiring in South Carolina. However, they said Milwaukee will always be close to their hearts.