Former fire chief John Jenkins 'lived and breathed' West Barnstable

WEST BARNSTABLE — John Jenkins was totally devoted to the West Barnstable Fire Department and fire service as chief for 32 years, but he had many other interests, jobs and talents, his friends recalled this week following his death at age 77 on Sept. 27.

“He lived and breathed West Barnstable. He loved the department and the village. He was an institution,” current West Barnstable Fire Chief Joe Maruca said.

Maruca said Jenkins also was the driving force for the West Barnstable Festival, was well-known for his strong singing voice, was famous for his cooking and clam chowder, ran John’s Dogs hot dog and lunch truck, sold fire trucks and apparatus for Pierce Fire Apparatus for nearly 40 years, and “he was fun.”

Fire chief had many roles in West Barnstable

“He helped a lot of people get started in fire service,” Maruca said. “It was highly unusual — almost unheard of — to serve as chief that long.”

Jenkins loved fire operations and was involved with the state Forest Service, Maruca said.

The West Barnstable Fire Department really grew as an organization and a department under Jenkins, who went from being a volunteer to part-time firefighter, then chief at age 27, Maruca said.

When Jenkins first headed the department, it was in a cinder block building on Route 6A where two trucks could barely fit. Jenkins’ chicken coop on Parker Road was used for two decades to house more trucks.

“He was the driving force to consolidate our force,” when it built the current firehouse in 1988, Maruca said.

Retired Centerville fire chief John Farrington recalled more of Jenkins’ contributions to fire service on the Cape.

“He lived, ate, slept fire department and loved fire rescue,” he said.

A mentor to new firefighters

Jenkins mentored hundreds of volunteer firefighters, who went on to become permanent firefighters in other districts on and off the Cape, Farrington said.

Farrington recalled that he first met Jenkins in 1965 when he was a 16-year-old call firefighter for Centerville and was responding to a car fire on Route 6. Farrington said he got to know Jenkins well when Jenkins became fire chief in 1973.

Jenkins was active in the Barnstable County Fire Chiefs Association, coordinated musters among fire departments on the Cape and was still the Barnstable fire warden when he died, Farrington said.

“He was a likable guy, easy to get along with and never said a bad word about anybody. He knew everybody,” he said.

Born in Schenectady, N.Y., son of the late Peter Pineo and Rowena Rae (Benjamin) Jenkins, Jenkins moved with his parents to the family home in West Barnstable in 1953, according to his obituary. As a young man, he helped with Pineo’s poultry business, relishing his “egg route” and “life on the farm.” After graduating from high school, he enlisted in the United States Air Force, where he served as a fire protection specialist with the 443rd Civil Engineering Squadron, rising to the rank of sergeant prior to being honorably discharged in 1970.

When he returned from military service, he ran for and was elected chief of the West Barnstable Fire Department and served for 32 years until his retirement in 2005.

An article in the Barnstable Patriot told how Jenkins spoke at the West Barnstable Historical Society just before his retirement in 2005, recalling fund-raising bingo evenings by the firefighters association that over the years financed as much as $350,000 in new facilities. He also expressed his fondness for early fire equipment, such as a sturdy brush breaker and a favorite pumper that he hoped would be restored.

Worked to preserve West Barnstable's past

Jenkins also was a trustee for the 1717 Meetinghouse Foundation.

Nancy Shoemaker, a former trustee with Jenkins, said, “He loved West Barnstable and loved the rich history of West Barnstable.”

Georgia Lonkart, president of the 1717 Meetinghouse Foundation, said Jenkins cared passionately about the Meetinghouse. He became a life member of the foundation in 1978 and served many years on various committees and as an officer at various times.

“He was always concerned about how best to preserve and protect the Meetinghouse for the future and was particularly proud of his relationship to 'Cousin Elizabet,' as he called Elizabeth Crocker Jenkins, the woman who saved the Meetinghouse and led the restoration in the 1950s,” Lonkart said. “John’s booming voice, his passion, and knowledge of history will be missed by the board of trustees.”

Eva Holway Needs described a close relationship Jenkins had with her father, Harry Lawrence Holway Jr. Known as "Scoop,” Holway worked at Paul Atwood's garage on Route 6A next to the fire station when Jenkins hung out there as a teenager, showing an interest in firefighting. Holway was a fireman with the Centerville, Osterville, Marstons Mills (COMM) Fire Department and often stopped by the West Barnstable station “to shoot the breeze and help the guys there when he could,” she said. When her father died in 1994, Jenkins had his department make special recognition of him, and he spoke at Holway’s funeral.

“John has a special place in my heart for being so good to my father,” she said.

Information on services

Calling hours are 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at Doane, Beal & Ames Funeral Home, 160 W. Main St., Hyannis. The funeral is 10 a.m. Saturday at West Parish, 1717 Meetinghouse, Route 149, West Barnstable. A reception hosted by the Jenkins family follows the service at “The Chicken Coop,” formerly the West Barnstable Fire Station 2, 265 Park Road, West Barnstable. Burial will be in West Barnstable Cemetery.

Maruca sent a notice asking all first responders (fire, police, dispatchers, etc.) to participate in a walk-through at 5:30 p.m. Friday at the funeral home. First responders also are asked to line up on the sidewalk along Route 149 after the funeral between the Meetinghouse and the West Barnstable Fire Station. The West Barnstable staff will line up at the fire station and salute the procession, then proceed to the burial.

In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to the Barnstable County Fire Chiefs Association 1875 Falmouth Road, Centerville, MA 02632 or The 1717 Foundation (West Parish), 2049 Meetinghouse Way, West Barnstable, MA 02668, according to Jenkins' obituary.

Get the Cape Cod news that matters delivered to your inbox. Sign up for our free newsletters.

This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Former fire chief John Jenkins 'lived and breathed' West Barnstable