Lifetime Malvernite marks 50 years in the FD

He could just be the village’s Clark Kent.

By day, part-time village employee Greg Evans maintains Malverne’s parking meters, making sure they are in working order and emptying the proceeds to bring back to the village.

But any time his beeper goes off, Evans, 68, is a firefighter for the Malverne Fire Department who recently celebrated his 50th year fighting fires in the village and surrounding communities.

Evans, a lifetime Malverne resident, was chief of the department from 1981-1982, and said he was inspired by his dad, who was also an ex-chief from 1961-1962. “I grew up interested in the fire department because of him,” said Evans, who joined the fire department when he was 18 years old. “You could join the Fire Department when you were 18 with your parents’ permission,” said Evans. “21 without it.”

A 32-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department who retired in 2006, Evans worked out of different locations in the Bronx and Manhattan, and left as a supervising dispatcher.

His volunteer work over the years is nothing short of impressive, having served as president and secretary of the 4th Battalion Chiefs Association, trustee and president of the Malverne Fire Benevolent Exempt Association, captain of the Malverne Fire Department Police Squad (after serving as sergeant and lieutenant), and a member of the New York State Association of Fire Chiefs, the Nassau County Fireman’s Association and the South Shore Volunteer Fire Department Associations. Within the Malverne Fire Department, he held nearly a dozen different titles, including chief: mechanic, lieutenant, captain, and warden to the Fire Council, second and first assistant chief, and a member of many committees.

“Ex-chief Evans is a daily reminder that tradition and volunteerism are vital qualities that allow an organization and a community to thrive,” said Malverne Fire Department Chief Michael Gildea. “Having been a son of a Chief of the Malverne Fire Department, Greg fully understood the values and ideals of firefighting in Malverne. Not only did Greg embrace those traditions, he built and instilled many new ideals and traditions that our membership still upholds to this day.”

When asked how firefighting has changed over the years, Evans said he was thankful that certain housing construction techniques have changed, like the use of polyurethane-based paints and better windows. “The polyurethane affected your ability to breathe, and the windows in the old days were a one pane of glass. The new windows hold the heat, and smoke in the house,” he said.

There is also more government involvement in firefighting. “”The government was never as involved as it is today,” he remarked. Is that a good thing? “I’m not saying,” Evans replied.

Firefighter dedication has a lot to do with why many members have decades of experience in the Malverne Fire Department, Evans said. “They invested many years in the department and they want tot see it keep going to a higher level than it was before,” he said.

There is a slight problem, however, in retaining younger members — but it’s not due to dissatisfaction. “We lose a lot of members because of the expensive houses in Malverne,” Evans said. “The majority of our members don’t leave because they’re not satisfied. It’s because of financial reasons.”

Today Evans doesn’t actively fight fires, but you will see him with the Fire Police, closing off streets around a fire scene to keep the public safe. “I don’t go inside anymore,” he said. “That’s a young man’s game.”