When Pam Wilmer turned 16, she told her father, Steve Wilmer, that she wanted to become an EMT and join the rescue squad.
Her father, then chief of the South River Volunteer Fire Department, told her something like, “I’ll be damned – if you wanna run calls, you can join the fire department.”
That’s exactly what she did. Pam, whose last name is now Whorley, was recognized for 25 years of service at the fire department’s annual awards banquet last month when that story was told by her daughter, Emilee Whorley, and her husband, Brad Whorley, both of whom are also firefighters.
She also received the department’s highest honor, firefighter of the year.
Emilee Whorley, meanwhile, was honored with the line officers’ choice award, while Brad Whorley received the training award for the 140 hours of training he took during 2025.
The three Whorleys were also among the department members answering the most calls during the year. The top five were Brad Whorley, 161; Pam Whorley, 146; Kelly Jennings, 140; Emilee Whorley, 139; and Billy Nicely, 80.
Nicely was also recognized for 45 years of service to the department and was praised as a mentor to younger members. Also recognized for service years were Emilee Whorley, her cousin William Wilmer and Charles Kirby, who marked one year with the department. It was noted that Emilee Whorley and William Wilmer are fourth-generation firefighters with the department.
The citizenship award went to the fire department’s auxiliary.
In her chief’s report, Kelly Jennings said the department responded to 292 incidents during 2025, including 102 motor vehicle collisions, 32 structure fires, 16 vehicle fires including tractor- trailers, 33 automatic fire alarms and 22 brush fires.
“We had another fantastic carnival, and we were very fortunate to gain several new members,” she said. With the help of the ladies auxiliary and continued support of the community, she said, the department was able to purchase several new sets of turnout gear, 23 new fire helmets and a new system for refilling the self-contained breathing apparatus used by the firefighters.
The call of the year occurred on Feb. 20 when the department and multiple other departments responded to a house fire in Fairfield during a snowstorm, which created multiple challenges.
