For many, holidays are about spending time with family and friends. Whether that includes opening presents, enjoying a wonderful meal, or just sitting around reminiscing, these days are special and often a break from the everyday hustle and bustle.
However, there are many people who don’t always get to celebrate these joyous occasions. Here, we meet three such responders who have traded the luxury of holidays off to protect and serve our community.
Andrew Gitto, Patrol Sergeant with the Scotch Plains Police Department
After serving in the United States Marine Corps, Andrew Gitto knew he wanted to continue to be of service to his country, and being a police officer, he felt, was the next closest thing.
“I’ve been a police officer for 10 years,” he says. “I worked with the Warren County Sheriff's Office for a couple of years before transferring to Scotch Plains in 2017. It’s a great community.”
Now that he has a family, his schedule can be challenging. “I have two-year-old Cooper and nine-month-old Keegan, and my wife Alyssa is great. Being in this job, it’s extremely important to have a strong family at home.”
Together for over 16 years, the couple married in 2020, and they figured out how to make his absences work. “We know my schedule ahead of time, so if I do end up having to work a holiday, we celebrate the day before or the day after,” says Andrew.
As a supervisor, he tries to make it possible for his officers who live in town to stop home on holidays to spend time with their families while listening and responding to calls.
John Lestarchick, Chief of the Scotch Plains Fire Department
When John Lestarchick joined the Scotch Plains Fire Department in 1985, he was following in the footsteps of his father and brother. Today, John is the chief of the department, answering over 1000 calls a year.
“When I started, there were about 200 calls a year,” he says. “But now, we respond to everything from the most minimal carbon monoxide alarm and automatic fire alarms to medical emergencies and motor vehicle accidents.”
Answering this many calls comes at a price. “When I joined the fire department, I was only 18,” says John. “Back then, running out for calls wasn't really a big deal, but then my family grew. For my wife Allison and my kids, my having to leave when the pager went off was just a fact of life.” Fortunately, his wife grew up in a family of firefighters, so she understood her husband’s calling.
Today, his kids are grown, but their father’s career has had a big influence in their lives. “My daughter Jane is married to a Jersey City firefighter and my son Raymond is a Westfield firefighter.”
Daniel Sullivan, Chief of the Scotch Plains Rescue Squad
As a teenager in 1970, Chief Sullivan used to ride his bike to the squad building to answer calls. “I was answering about 800 calls a year at that time.”
Today, that number has grown to over 15,000. For his wife, Judy, and kids, Erin and Sean, that meant a lot of missed dinners.
“I married a great wife,” says Dan. “She also belonged to the squad at one point and was a nurse for many years. She understood what I was doing.” In fact, the couple were married on Christmas Eve, and during Christmas dinner with his parents, there was a call and he had to go.
When the kids came along, their dad getting up and running out the door was a normal part of their childhood, and they always managed to work around it. Many times, birthdays and other celebrations took place at the rescue squad when he was on duty.
Even though Dan is a volunteer, he takes his responsibility to the town very seriously. “I believe it’s a vocation,” he says. “If I can't be with somebody I love, it's nice to be helping someone who may be having the worst holiday of their life.”