Former Kent Fire Chief Tom Foster, 85, died peacefully at a local assisted care facility on May 17 after fighting prostate cancer for 15 years.
Foster was the first paid fire chief for the then Kent Fire Department, now known as the Kent Regional Fire Authority. He served as chief from 1965 until he retired in 1981. Prior to that, the position was a volunteer one.
Firefighting ran in Foster’s blood. He began his long career as a volunteer firefighter in 1950 in the Panther Lake area. In 1952, the Seattle Fire Department hired him as a firefighter. He served in Seattle until resigning in 1965 to become the Kent chief.
In addition to a career as a firefighter, Foster had many more accomplishments to his credit. Some of his professional highlights include:
• Serving as an instructor, including as lead instructor, at the Washington State Fire Academy
• Writing curriculum for the State and Federal Fire Academies that is still in use today
• Serving as the President of the Washington State Fire Chiefs Association
• Serving as the President of the Western States Fire Chiefs Association
• Pushing for the fire department to oversee the city of Kent Building Department
• Instituting building fire inspections to make residents safer
• Overseeing the new idea of using aid cars to provide emergency care in the Kent area and staging the aid cars at high school football games to provide quick medical assistance if needed
Foster, who held badge number KF0001 with the department, will always be remembered as a gruff man who cared about his people, the public and the fire service, according to a Kent RFA media release.
Foster was born on Oct. 20, 1930 in Wenatchee. His family moved to Kent in 1941. He attended Panther Lake Elementary School and graduated in 1948 from Kent High School.
Survivors include Margaret, his wife of 67 years; his children Larry (Nancy), Mike (Julie), Jane, Jeff (Michelle), and Todd (Dina), 10 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
A memorial service is at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, June 1. Per his request, the service will be in the apparatus bay of Fire Station 74, 24611 116th Ave. SE. The service is open to the public.
In lieu of flowers, people are asked to donate to the Kent Firefighters Foundation, FDCares or Providence Hospice of Seattle.
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