Robin A. Howard

Robin Howard graduated from the University of Maryland Baltimore County with a nursing degree and began work in 1975 as a Registered Nurse at the then Anne Arundel General Hospital in downtown Annapolis. Robin left the hospital in 1984 and was hired by the United States Navy as a Safety Specialist, trained and certified as an OSHA Inspector and worked for the David Taylor Naval Ship and Research Development Center (DTRC) in Annapolis until the base closed due to the Base Realignment and Closure in 1999. Robin had extensive training and was certified in radiation.  She was promoted to Radiation Safety Officer.   She conducted annual inspections every year as well as accident investigations at several of the United States Naval Experimental Stations throughout the United States. Robin became a member of the Regional Naval Radiation Emergency Response Team based out of Yorktown, Virginia. She was a Gas-Free Engineer for confined space entry and was part of Crane Safety, respirator training and fit-testing, and the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Instructor/Coordinator for both DTRC and United States Naval Academy.

Robin started in the fire service in 1982 joining the Grasonville Volunteer Fire Department, along with her younger sister Pam, becoming an active Firefighter/EMT. She was part of the very first Advanced Life Support class for Queen Anne’s County in 1984 becoming a Cardiac Rescue Technician utilizing chase vehicles. She earned several awards as Top Responder for fire and EMS calls from 1982 to 1988 and received a life-saving award for a very serious motor vehicle collision with entrapment on route 50.

Robin joined the Deale Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad, (DVFD) in 1989 and was active until the death of her youngest son Danny in 1991. She began participating in fire department activities again by supporting daughter Samantha as the Little Miss Fire Prevention Queen for DVFD in the late 1990’s. Robin was reinstated in 2006 when her youngest daughter became a DVFD cadet.

Robin did not have her Maryland Basic Firefighting from 1982 Pro-Boarded and had let her EMT and CRT expire. She began the journey of fire department training over. From 2006-2008, she successfully completed EMT-B, Firefighter I, Firefighter II, Hazmat Operations, Pumps, Aerial Operations, EVOC, ICS 100, 200, 700, 800, and CPR Instructor. From 2009-2010, she successfully completed Fire Officer I, Fire Officer II, Fire Officer III,  Fire Officer IV, Instructor I, Instructor II, and Instructor III.  Robin went on to complete Fire Inspector I, Fire Inspector II, Fire Inspector III, Airport Firefighter, Public Fire Safety Educator I, HazMat Incident Commander, Safety Officer, and ICS 400 along with several Fire Executive seminars, Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute short courses, Fire Executive seminars, and EMT re-certifications.

In 2012, Robin had written a successful fire prevention grant for which DVFD was awarded at the 2012 Maryland State Fireman’s Association convention. She has participated on several committees including by-laws for DVFD tasked with updating 40 year old bylaws as well as assisting on the Anne Arundel County Volunteer Firefighter’s Association (AACVFA) by-laws committee. She was appointed as AACVFA EMS committee chair in 2013 and served until fall of 2017.

In 2013 Robin obtained her Pro-board certifications for Fire Apparatus Driver Operator (FADO), Pumper, and FADO Aerial.

In 2013 and to present, she became one of her most beloved positions in the fire service: Fire Chaplain for Anne Arundel County Fire Department (and actively a part of the Peer Support Team) and DVFD and as such, has taken the following training to best serve: Essentials for Fire Chaplaincy (Federation of Fire Chaplains), Chaplain Visitation Pastoral Care, Critical Incident Stress Management I and II for both individual and group, Pastoral Crisis Intervention, Line of Duty Death  notification class, Suicide Awareness, Share The Load, and Firefighter Behavioral Health.

Beginning December 2011, at the request and direction from the County Fire Chief to honor our county’s fallen, for the past two years, County Fire Chaplain Howard along with County Fire Chaplains Long and Gibson, accompanied with Fire Chief Graves, the Fire Administration, and Honor Guard have been performing several Line of Duty graveside memorials/wreath laying with the deceased members families in attendance. There are 19 specific memorials each year.  December 2018 will conclude with 38 separate memorials attended, prayers, and honors rendered.

As county Fire Chaplain 3, Robin has been alerted and responded to assist on several emergencies, including the AA County Police when their Chaplain wasn’t available on a fatal overdose to render assistance to the victim’s family.  Robin is on call 24/7 as Anne Arundel County Fire Department Chaplain 3 and responds wherever she is needed.

As Chaplain, she makes rounds conducting visitations at several hospitals, medical facilities, and homes visiting the sick and injured. Robin has been at bedside giving compassion, encouragement, and support when members of the fire service have passed.  She has assisted on several occasions escorting and driving members and their families to doctor appointments and medical procedures.

Robin participates in preparing and delivering prayer and scriptures several times a year at various funerals and events at the local, county, and state level.

Robin was honored and appointed Chaplain by and for Deale VFD in 2015 after the passing of longtime Chaplain Robert Wilkerson who had that position in Deale for over 40 years.

Robin is a life member of the Maryland Fire Chief’s Association (MFCA) and has been serving as Region V Chaplain servicing Prince Georges and Anne Arundel County since 2013, and as recent as May 25^th 2017, Robin was selected by the Executive Board of the MFCA to fill the position of Deputy Chief Chaplain. In 2016, President Owens appointed Robin to chair the Opioid Addiction Taskforce. She became passionate to help reducing the opioid epidemic and took a lay-public narcan class.  She then contacted the county health department to arrange local narcan classes for south county residents and churches. Robin became a member of the South County Bridges (south county taskforce to reduce the addiction epidemic) and attends their monthly meetings and community awareness training.

Robin continues to manage the DVFD CPR program along with daughter Samantha in teaching not only company members but also local community groups such as Boy Scouts and churches.  In the past, she was able to obtain several thousand dollar’s worth of smoke detectors to assist DVFD in a public outreach program concerning fire safety. She developed and conducts an orientation program for new DVFD members.