CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Chicago’s Acting Fire Commissioner made history Friday, having been named the first woman to hold the top job in the department.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Friday that Acting Fire Commissioner Annette Nance-Holt will take over as the permanent Commissioner of the Chicago Fire Department, pending City Council approval.
Commissioner Nance-Holt will be the first woman and first woman of color to lead the Chicago Fire Department in its 162-year history.
Mayor Lightfoot noted her more than 30 years of service in nearly every role in the department.
"Commissioner Holt has more than three decades of proven leadership and a passion for public service that makes her the perfect fit for this role," Lightfoot said.
"At a time when we still have work to do in order to eradicate the scourges of discrimination, racism, and sexism from the firefighter and other professions, Commissioner Nance-Holt's appointment couldn't come at a better time...I want to congratulate her on formally and permanently stepping into the role and look forward to seeing how she builds upon CFD's long-standing reputation as the finest in the nation."
Nance-Holt has been serving as acting commissioner since Richard Ford II retired as commissioner earlier this year.
"Thank you Mayor Lightfoot for this opportunity to serve the citizens of Chicago and lead the greatest fire department in the world. Truly, we are," Nanch-Holt said.
“The Fire Department must have membership and leadership that mirrors the communities it serves every day. As a child, I never laid eyes on either a female firefighter or a firefighter of color. There were no role models who looked like me, and so I never thought that becoming a firefighter, which was my dream, would be a possibility for me. As Fire Commissioner, I intend to show the next generation of young black women that they too can achieve any and everything they set their minds and hearts to.”
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The Mayor called Nance-Holt the real deal.
On her first day leading CFD, Commissioner Nance-Holt will join Mayor Lightfoot in swearing in the Department’s newest class of 42 paramedics.
Nance-Holt has been serving as acting commissioner since Richard Ford II retired as commissioner earlier this year. Prior to becoming commissioner, Nance-Holt became first deputy commissioner in 2018, making her the first woman to hold the Department’s number two spot. Before becoming First Deputy, Commissioner Nance-Holt served the Chicago Fire Department with distinction in the following positions: Deputy District Chief, Battalion Chief-EMT, Captain-EMT, Lieutenant-EMT, and as a firefighter.
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