A Long Collegeville History
Lou is about as local to Collegeville Borough as you can get. When he was little, he originally lived on Glen Farms Drive. His uncle is Jerry Chiccarine, the avid Collegeville historian who published the books “Along the Perkiomen,” “The Upper Perkiomen Valley,” and “Southeastern Montgomery County.” His cousin, Paul, owns the iconic Chiccarine Diamonds and Jewelry store in the Collegeville Shopping Center https://chiccarines.com/
Lou is also the grandson of Sam and Adeline Chiccarine who owned and ran the Perkiomen Bridge Hotel and restaurant staring the 1940s. “I grew up running around the hotel,” Lou says. After graduating from Perkiomen Valley High School, Lou trained at the famous Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, hoping to follow in the family business. He graduated from the Culinary Institute in 1983.
Volunteering at the Collegeville Fire Company
After graduating and moving back to Collegeville, Lou immediately joined the volunteer Collegeville Fire Company. “In the 1980s and 1990s, I became Assistant Fire Chief under then Chief Dennis Parker. I also taught at the Montgomery County Fire Academy in Conshohocken,” Lou adds. In 1992 Lou was awarded the “Firefighter of the Year” by the Collegeville Jaycees. Once he and his wife began having their three children, though, Lou scaled back his involvement in the Fire Company, focusing on his family obligations.
Working at the Montco 911 Center
Through the years volunteering at the Fire Company, Lou got to know Dean Miller. Dean’s full-time job at the time was with the Montgomery County Communications Center in Eagleville, which is now the county’s 911 Center. One day Dean suggested that Lou would really enjoy working there. That’s when Lou decided to leave his chef duties and started in 1984 at the Montco Communications Center. https://www.montgomerycountypa.gov/133/Emergency-Communications He found that the job really suited him.
At his Montco job, Lou started as a police fire and ambulance dispatcher, then over the years was promoted to supervisor. He now works in Customer Service and with the Center’s computer database. Over the years, especially through his dispatcher jobs, Lou has gotten to know a very wide range of local fire and police men and women in Public Safety Agencies throughout Montgomery County.
Although Lou had been away from actively volunteering at the Collegeville Station for many years for his family, he explains that “About a year and a half ago, I was at Lower Merion Fire Company in Ardmore and their Chief Tom Hayden showed me the second floor of the station, which was outfitted with several workspaces. The benefit of those works spaces is that if Fire Company members work remotely from there, they are already at the station if they get a fire call. The Collegeville Fire Company gets about 350 to 400 emergency calls a year. We never know when those calls will come in, and if the volunteers like to hang out at the station, they can respond more quickly.
“So I talked to the people at work, and they agreed that I could work from the Collegeville station remotely. Presently I work from the Collegeville firehouse several days a week when possible. Returning to responding on emergency calls was a challenge at the age of 62, however the members welcomed me back and were very helpful in getting me back up to speed. When there is a call I currently drive the apparatus, and that has been a good fit for me personally.
Becoming the Collegeville Fire Company President
“I was elected Fire Company President at the Company’s January 2025 meeting and assumed the position following the February meeting. The President oversees the business & administrative duties of the Fire Company. It takes a team though, and we are fortunate to have several talented individuals that keep the operations running smoothly. Currently, Gary Sassaman serves as First Vice President, Gwen Penuel as Second Vice President, Lisa Parker is our Recording Secretary, Jan Korenkiewicz serves as Treasurer, and Neil Mochrie is our Financial Secretary. Brian Kuklinski holds the highest position on the operational side as our Fire Chief, with Matt Musselman serving as Deputy Chief, Craig Penuel as Assistant Chief, and Jay Murphy as Battalion Chief.
“We have a great group of caring & well-trained members at the Collegeville Fire Company. One of our biggest assets is our highly trained and knowledgeable long-term members. They provide our Station with a lot of depth & experience. Our veteran members combined with the youth and high-energy of our younger members makes us well suited to serve the Community. Recently we were joined by three Ursinus College students. They saw an opportunity to contribute to our operation and are learning quickly on the job, and training at the Montgomery County Fire Academy, along with some other newer members,” Lou explains. “We are always on the look-out for new members, so I encourage anyone who is interested in volunteering or who would like to learn more about the Fire Company, to reach out to us.”
Please join us in welcoming Lou Chiccarine to his new position! Individuals interested in learning more and/or joining the Collegeville Fire Company can call the firehouse at 610-489-4464, check out https://www.collegevillefire.org/ for more information, or stop by the Station any Monday evening. The members are normally there by 7 p.m.
Please join us in welcoming Lou Chiccarine to his new position!
