POUGHKEEPSIE – Firefighters, friends, elected officials, and others recently attended a luncheon at Poughkeepsie Fire Department Station 1 on North Clover Street to express their gratitude to Captain Greg Deichler, who retired after 39 years of service to the city on May 1, 2024.
Captain Deichler began as a dispatcher with the City of Poughkeepsie in 1985 before being hired as a firefighter in 1986.
The Deichler name carries on in the Poughkeepsie Fire Department with Captain Deichler’s son Ken working out of the Main Street Station as a firefighter.
Captain Deichler served 12 years as a firefighter before being promoted to lieutenant in 1998. He spent only three years in that role before reaching the rank of captain in 2001, where he served until his final day in the department.
Poughkeepsie Deputy Fire Chief Vincent Parise said that Deichler offered him advice and support when Parise was first promoted to the rank of lieutenant. “When I was a newly promoted lieutenant assigned to Captain Deichler, he said to me, ‘For the first couple shifts, I will respond with you and help you on all alarms, after that, I’m going to hang back and let you handle some situations, but I will be right there should you need me for anything.'”
Parise gave credit to Deichler, saying, “The confidence he instilled in me with the added support of knowing he was there should I need advice or help, played a big part in making me the officer that I am today.”
