Retired Festus Fire Department Chief Charles Cayce died Jan. 17. He was 81 and lived in Festus.
On Facebook, Festus Fire officials said Cayce had worked for the department for 44 years. He was chief of the department from 2000-2009.
According to a Leader story from 2009, Cayce was named part-time chief in 2000 and full-time chief in 2004, when he became the first paid firefighter for the Festus Fire Department, which was established in 1897. The department had been staffed by all volunteers prior to that.
Community leaders said Cayce had devoted his life to public service.
In addition to his fire service, he served on Festus city boards and volunteered for other groups and causes.
“Charlie was a great friend of the city,” Festus Mayor Sam Richards said. “He served on the Parks Board for many, many years. He was a great citizen and a great man. He will be missed.”
Alvin Riney, president of the Cultural Diversity Committee and G.S.B.T.T.C. (Giving Something Back to the Community) organizations based in the Twin City area, praised Cayce’s community service.
“He was a cousin of mine by marriage,” Riney said. “He was someone considered to be a plus to the community. His service to the community in that capacity (as fire chief) was just exemplary.”
Jeff Broombaugh, the current Festus fire chief and former Rock Community fire chief, said he had a long friendship with Cayce.
“He was a good servant of the Festus area,” Cayce said. “I’d known him since I went into firefighting in the 1980s. He was well known in the fire service around the county. He was an all-around good guy.”
Chuck Boyer, the current assistant Festus fire chief and former chief of the department, said he appreciated knowing and working with Cayce.
“Charlie started with the department in 1965,” Boyer said. “He worked himself up through the ranks and became captain, then chief. He mentored me when he retired in 2009 when I was appointed chief. He definitely served the fire department and served the city.”
Boyer recalled Cayce rebounding from a serious firefighting injury to return to protecting the community.
“In the ‘70s, he was at a fire at a house and fell through the floor and landed in the basement and was severely burned,” Boyer said. “He came back and went back to fighting fires.”
The city of Crystal City also posted on Facebook about Cayce’s death, noting he had served as a volunteer firefighter with the Crystal City Fire Department. In addition, the Joachim-Plattin Ambulance District said on Facebook that Cayce had been “one of the founding EMTs at JPAD and served as a long term JPAD board member.”
The Mahn Funeral Home Festus Chapel, 515 Collins Road, is handling Cayce’s funeral arrangements. Visitation will be from noon until the funeral at 3 p.m., Feb. 1, at the funeral home.