Each year, members of the department vote to recognize one member for their efforts and contributions to the organization. Termed "Firefighter of the Year," the recognition seeks to distinguish one member from the department that consistantly goes above and beyond the call of duty to keep the department advancing forward.
It is my pleasure to recognize Assistant Chief Jonathan Capps as the 2025 "Firefighter of the Year". Chief Capps serves as our Assistant Chief of Training and Safety, but does way more of the heavy lifting it takes to keep the department advancing and developing. Some of his accomplishments in the past year include the construction of a new firefighter training facility, several policy changes and updates to keep us compliant with labor regulations, the development of a new department training plan, and the management of the department's pre-incident planning activities. With all of this, he continued to respond to emergencies, deployed to the mountains, and still seems to catch the Carolina Panthers' home games.
Jonathan is married to Lauren, who also works to make our fire department move forward!
Orange Rural Fire would not be the success it is today without the contributions of the Capps family and all of the other families that keep us advancing.
Here are some of the comments that the members submitted with their nominations of Assistant Chief Capps.

"He is given a large workload, continues to carry it out fully, and is always available and willing to help outside of his role."
"Effort and dedication, (he) makes a big difference, always grateful for his guidance."
"Hardwork, dedication, patience."

Please join me in congratulating Assistant Chief Jonathan Capps.