Photo courtesy of Mountain Brook Fire Department.
Mountain Brook Fire Chief Chris Mullins.
Chris Mullins didn’t write the book on being a firefighter, but the Mountain Brook fire chief is in the book.
The 30-year veteran of the Mountain Brook Fire Department was a lieutenant when publisher Dorling Kindersley came to town to produce a children’s book, “A Day in the Life of a Firefighter.”
Photo by Solomon Crenshaw Jr
Mullins hold a copy of Dorley Kindersley’s children’s book on firefighting, which features a photo of him (on the right page).
“I’m in the book,” Mullins recalled. “My name is Luis in the book, and it’s all about a day in the life of a firefighter. I think there’s four of us [from the Mountain Brook department] in the book. I’ve got a hard copy, a hardbound signed copy from all the guys that were in it. They’re all retired now, but me.”
Come Nov. 1, the ranks of retired Mountain Brook firefighters in that book will increase by one. Mullins, whose 33 years as a firefighter include three decades in Mountain Brook, has announced that he will retire at the beginning of November.
The timing couldn’t be better, Mullins said. The month that features Thanksgiving is when he will conclude an employment stint for which he is very thankful.
“When people ask about my job, I tell them I get to go to the Magic Kingdom every day, and I mean that,” he said. “People call it the Tiny Kingdom, but I’ve always come with the Magic Kingdom because that’s how it feels to me.”
Mullins said he loves his job and he loves the city.
Photo by Solomon Crenshaw Jr
Mountain Brook fire Chief Chris Mullins stands in front of a mural of Fire Station No. 1 in the Fire Department’s administrative offices.
“If everybody was as happy in what they do as I am, the world would be a happier place,” the chief said. “This place has treated me so good over the years. It’s more than I ever could have imagined or dreamed of. I’ve had a Cinderella career. I can’t say enough about how I’ve been treated and respected.
“I don’t even have enough words to tell you about my career here,” he continued. “I work with the best people…I work with the best people. The joy of my job is the people — people that I work for, the people I work on and the people I work with. That’s what’s made it worthwhile for me.”
City Manager Steve Boone is another 30-year veteran with Mountain Brook, much of that as assistant city manager and finance director. He said the city is thankful to have had Mullins the past three decades, the past 10 as chief.
“Chris has been a great leader for the city, been a great ambassador for the city,” Boone said. “You won’t find another department head that has more love for this city and does a better job, takes in more passion than Chris Mullins. He’s a great asset to the community, and he will be sorely missed.”
Mullins said he’s seen a lot in 30 years, some good and some bad.
“In my career, I’ve delivered 10 babies, so I’ve seen the first breath of 10 people come into this world,” he said. “But I’ve seen countless more than that leave the world. You get both ends of the spectrum. You see good stuff, you have the good days, the good stories. But then you see the bad stuff, all the bad stuff that stays with you forever.”
Mullins began his career with the Birmingham Fire Department. He was there from 1993 until 1996, when he came over to Mountain Brook.
“I got a lot of experience over the hill [in Birmingham] and then came over here, to the promised land,” he said. “I have nothing bad to say about my time at Birmingham. I learned a lot — gained a lot of experience, and I got to help a lot of people.
“That’s why I got into [firefighting] to begin with, to help people,” the chief said. “That’s my heart, and so that’s what I love to do.”
Photo by Solomon Crenshaw Jr
Mullins said the department will be in good hands after his retirement because a succession plan is in place.
Mullins acknowledged that he doesn’t get to help people directly as much as he formerly did because he’s the chief. He works in the office now, dealing with a lot of human resource matters and budgets. But he gleans joy and pride from the efforts of the men and women under his charge.
“Just to see what we do and how our guys do and their attitudes and their love for the city and how they serve people — it’s just fulfilling,” he said. “If God calls you to do that, I don’t think there’s any better calling in the whole world — following His footsteps to be a servant.”
Mullins has served in fire department administration for 20 years, 10 of those years as chief. He admitted that the weight of the job is heavy.
“I carry 66 people with me everywhere I go, and so I’m never off,” he said. “It’s just — it’s heavy. There comes that time where I’ve got to shift the load. I tell the council it’s like the marathoner or the sprinter. The sprinter, right? He’s got the baton and he’s running as fast as he can run. He’s trying to get that baton to the next guy. But he won’t quit. When he quits is when he’s at his peak, and that’s where I want to be.”
The chief said the time is nearing for him to pass the baton.
“When I step away, it’ll be the right thing because we’ve done the right thing in succession planning in our department to set up for the future,” he said. “We have people in place. We’ve got a depth chart. That’s been intentional, very intentional.”
