Key West Fire Academy graduates Brent Bishop and Blake Arencibia were presented with a $500 Richard B. and Nina Jo Wardlow Scholarship, and both are headed to the Florida State Fire Academy in Ocala.
City Commissioner and retired Fire Chief Billy Wardlow explained that the scholarship – and the academy itself – were inspired by the late Chief Richard “Dickie” Wardlow. The Department established both in honor of Chief Wardlow after he and his wife Nina Jo were killed in a car crash in 1996. Commissioner Wardlow is Dickie’s brother.
Capt. Jason Barroso, who heads up the Academy, noted the dedication of each of the students who worked hard to complete the intensive Fire Academy training while attending to the rest of their studies at Key West High School.
In the photo: Key West Fire Chief Alan Averette, City Commissioner and retired Fire Chief Billy Wardlow, future firefighters Brent Bishop and Blake Arencibia, Division Chief of Emergency Management and Training Kenneth Wardlow, and Capt. Jason Barroso.