Chief David R. Peterson

Fire Chief David R. Peterson began his career in the fire service in January of 1975 as a volunteer firefighter. Encouraged by his uncle, then the City of Muskegon Fire Chief, and his cousins, who were also firefighters, he responded on an On Call basis while working full time in a foundry. He was hired full time in 1979 and promoted to fire marshal in 1986. In 1991 he was hired as the fire chief for Fruitport, Michigan Fire Department, and shortly after that, in 1993, he took over the position of fire chief for Plainfield Fire Department.

Chief Peterson developed a staffing system utilizing part time firefighters to fill 12 hour shifts in order to have five personnel on duty 24 hours a day. This plan has saved the township hundreds of thousands of dollars since its inception. He helped design and manage the construction of our new fire department headquarters, including a technologically savvy Training Center that provides training for not only the Plainfield Fire Department, but also for state and local emergency operations and businesses.

In 2005 Chief Peterson was voted Michigan Instructor of the Year by the Michigan Fire Service Instructors Association (www.mfsia.com). Since training is such a big part of his focus as a leader, he has dedicated much of his time as an instructor in Fire Officer and Chief Officer training programs. Recently, Chief Peterson contributed a chapter to a text book addressing training techniques in the fire service and he developed an entire training curriculum for Fire Chief 101 which is now taught around the state.

Chief Peterson currently serves as president of the Michigan Association of Fire Chiefs, and he sits on the boards of the West Michigan Association of Fire Chiefs, West Michigan Regional Training Center, and the Kent County Dispatch Authority. As a contributing participant on the Region 6 Incident Management Team, International Association of Fire Chiefs, and Kent County Association of Fire Chiefs, Chief Peterson dedicates his life to the improvement and coordination of fire and emergency services.

Chief David Peterson lives in Plainfield Township with his wife Pam. They have 5 children and 8 grandchildren. In his leisure time, Dave enjoys spending time with family and friends, golfing, photography and cruising in his Corvette.