Butch King, father of EMS in Canton, to retire after 42 years

By Mike Berger

After 42 years with the Canton Fire Department, firefighter/EMT Herb “Butch” King, otherwise known as the father of Canton’s Emergency Medical Services program, is getting ready to retire from his post. But King’s commitment to teaching CPR will continue, and he is currently coordinating with Fire Chief Charlie Doody to offer a monthly CPR course for residents at the fire station.

Fire Chief Charlie Doody thanks firefighter/EMT Butch King for his 42 years of servive to the town. (CFD courtesy photo)

In addition to the monthly course, King also plans to work for a private ambulance operator and to teach CPR in the community.

Both CPR and EMS are synonymous with King as he spent the better part of the past four decades promoting the need for emergency medical and ambulance services in Canton with five different fire chiefs. Coming off the heels of service as an Army sergeant in Vietnam, King recalled that in the late 1960s and early 1970s it was easier for an Army staffer to get emergency medical services in Vietnam than it was for someone to get emergency treatment after a car accident on Route 128.

In a recent interview, King said that while he will no longer be working for the Fire Department, he still has plans to initiate a community drive to enable the town to purchase advanced CPR equipment if a federal or state grant does not come through this year. The equipment was recently on loan to the Fire Department but has since been returned to the company. Called the “thumper,” the $15,000 piece of equipment allows continuous automatic compressions even as the victim is carried downstairs by paramedics. King said recent medical studies have shown that victims have a better survival rate when using the device.

Recently, King, along with Police K-9 Officer Scott Brown and his partner Bosco, were honored as Firefighter and Police Officers of the Year by the Knights of Columbus in a June ceremony. King was honored by the K of C for his 42 years of firefighter service as well as his tireless efforts to obtain funding at town meeting for emergency defibrillation equipment in every school and municipal building in town.

A 1964 graduate of Canton High School, King became a call firefighter for a couple of years before serving as an Army sergeant in the Crash Crew, responding to medical treatment victims. His mentor was former Fire Chief John Farrington, who was a next-door neighbor. He joined the CFD as a full-time firefighter in 1971.

His interest in emergency medical services grew when the town purchased its first ambulance in 1972 and in 1974 when state law required two EMTs on an ambulance at all times. He obtained his EMT certification in 1976 and became Canton’s EMS supervisor in 1980, working with EMTs and paramedics on course updates through the years.

King said that during the mid 1970s, the television show “Emergency” gave the public an accurate view of EMS and also explained the importance of hydraulic rescue tools, commonly referred to as the “Jaws of Life,” in extricating victims from car crashes.

As union president, King pushed for the town to pay for physicals and stress tests and also pushed state firefighters’ unions to ban smoking in union meetings. Although the idea was met with heavy resistance initially — some firefighters even threw ashtrays at him — it was eventually enforced and later became a nationwide policy.

King said the Canton firefighters’ union is well respected in town and that whenever he wears his work shirt in public, people approach him and thank him for his service. King, in his acceptance speech at the awards ceremony, said it was a pleasure to serve with his fellow firefighters and EMTs, as well as police officers, and described being a firefighter as the “best job going.”

Although King still plans to work and instruct, he also intends to spend more time with his family, which includes his wife, Maryanne, and his daughters, Kasey, 20, Misty Rose, 16, and Brandy, 14.

Chief Doody, in his speech at the K of C event, said he got to know King early in his life when he came to the station to visit his father, “Bucky.” Doody became trapped in the bathroom and was yelling for help, when the “door flew open, and there was a man, with red hair and glasses.” King, he said, “was another hero to me, next to my father.”

Doody had many kind words for King and for what he has meant to the Canton community, in and out of the fire station.

“Butch was always for our department,” Doody said. “He was dedicated to our EMS system, which I think is the best in the county and the state.”

Noting that King will be retiring this month, Doody said, “I just don’t know how Butch will be replaced. Wherever I go around the state, people ask, ‘Do I know Butch King?’ He is so well known.”

“Butch King will be one of those legendary figures in Canton Fire lore like John Metropolis and King Endicott,” Doody added. “He has been the heart and soul of this department for 40 years. I know he has caused previous fire chiefs some angst in his zeal to improve the department, but [he] never undertook a project or cause for ‘Butch King.’”

“His motivation was always in the best interests of the department, the town, and his fellow firefighters,” Doody continued. “His contribution to the town and department are unrivaled; from union president to EMT coordinator, he has devoted countless unpaid hours to the betterment of Canton and its firefighters. His charitable works have largely flown under the radar, but here are a few examples: Butch delivered Christmas presents to needy families for years in the Secret Santa program; he has trained thousands of citizens in CPR; he has coordinated muscular dystrophy fundraising events for Jerry’s Kids; he has hosted and continues to host Chernobyl students for many years — he and his wife actually held a fundraiser at St. John’s last year for their Chernobyl student who needed surgery; he chaperones the CHS all-night graduation party, coordinates the Mothers Against Drunk Driving demonstrations at both CHS and Blue Hills, and he teaches new driver’s [education] students about the dangers they will encounter on the roadways.

“Most recently, he volunteered to be part of a crew to construct a play house for a sick Canton child through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The list goes on and on. His enthusiasm, knowledge, experience, and passion for this job will not be easily or readily replaced. I, and I think I can speak for most of our department, will miss Butch King. Although I am happy for him and his [family] that he is retiring in great health, I also know that the void created by his departure will be difficult, if not impossible, to fill.”

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