The new deputy chief of Driver Volunteer Fire Department comes with a hefty amount of experience.

Charles McLeod is the new deputy chief, and he’s a 51-year-old longtime veteran of the service — even though his father wanted him to be a police officer.

His career in fire and EMS officially started in 1988 in Ocean Shores, Wash., and has since taken him to various levels of service in Oregon, Utah, Nevada, California and Virginia, as well as providing aid in Canada and the United Kingdom.

McLeod is a nationally registered paramedic with a Bachelor of Science in EMS administration and is currently studying for a master’s degree in emergency services management, according to the press release. He’s previously held positions like clinical preceptor and disaster consultant for various institutions and companies.

He’s also an adjunct assistant professor and clinical coordinator for the EMS program at Paul D. Camp Community College.

He first came to Virginia in 2010 as operations manager for PC Paramedic in Williamsburg, a disaster recovery IT company.

He got back into EMS in 2011 with the Virginia Beach Volunteer Rescue Squad, the largest all-volunteer based EMS system in the country.

Driver Volunteer Fire Department is an important institution in the city, and with other volunteer departments dying out both here and across the country, we hope Driver can continue for many more years its tradition of service to the residents of Driver, the surrounding area and, really, all of the citizens of Suffolk.

Volunteers are highly trained, capable professionals who willingly give their time to supplement the career staff of Suffolk Fire & Rescue. They deserve respect, admiration and support.

We hope McLeod’s tenure with the Driver Volunteer Fire Department proves to be a fruitful one.