Matt Schoonover. Image courtesy: WAOW TV
PLOVER, WI (WSAU-WAOW) – Matt Schoonover, a man of few words, was left mostly speechless Wednesday night, as his colleagues thanked him for 48 years of service to the firefighting profession.
“I don’t like crowds, I don’t like the celebrations and stuff, I like to be behind the scenes and help people out, so this is kind of tough for me,” he said.
The Plover and Whiting firefighter had spent the last 33 years of his tenure serving those communities, and if you asked him, he was always about helping people. “That’s my goal, if someone needs help, we respond. If I need help, they will come and help me. That’s how I was brought up. In a small town, it means a lot,” Schoonover said.
Many of his former teammates sent in video messages to be played during his ceremony at the Plover Fire Department. “He made a difference in every single one of our firefighters. He was always a soft-spoken person, but when he would talk to you, people would listen,” said current Plover Fire Chief Mark Deaver.
Also part of his video tribute was a report from March 2010, honoring him for going into a burning Whiting house to save a woman from danger. That story was one of many shared as those in attendance reflected on what multiple people said was a highly impactful tenure.
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