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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, D ec em be r 24 ,2 02 0 | 10 oakville.ca Hydro Line Clearing Tree pruning near hydro lines begins this January in south central Oakville (zone 3) from Chartwell Road to Fourth Line and Westdale Road, and from QEW to Lake Ontario. The town's professional contractor will prune trees on behalf of Oakville Hydro to ensure safe clearance around hydro lines, poles and guy lines to minimize safety hazards and power outages. Trees are pruned to the Electrical Safety Authority's (ESA) industry standard of providing a minimum three metre (10- foot) clearance around primary lines and a one-metre (three-foot) clearance around secondary lines. In rare instances, trees growing too close to hydro lines may require removal when the clearance standard cannot be achieved using acceptable pruning practices. In some situations, the town must prune or remove privately owned trees if they are growing too close to hydro lines. In cases where hydro lines are located in rear yards, Oakville Hydro has an easement through the property which allows the arborist to access the tree. For more information visit oakvillehydro.com or oakville.ca or contact ServiceOakville at 905-845-6601. When Joanne Blanchette was hired by the Oakville Fire Depart- ment 26 years ago, she became the department's first female fighter. While Blanchette was original- ly uncomfortable with the part of role model, she now realizes the importance of young women being able to see themselves in a certain career. Today, the department em- ploys 20 women. "I wouldn't presume I had any- thing to do with any of them choos- ing a career in fire services," said Blanchette, an assistant platoon chief. "We all do it for such different reasons." Whether or not Blanchette in- spired them to become a firefight- er, deputy fire chief Monique Be- lair said Blanchette has been a valuable resource for women pur- suing careers as firefighters. "She is a great role model with our new female fighters, offering them her support and mentorship should they need her guidance," Belair said. "I continuously uphold Joanne as a role model to other young women that may aspire to pursue a career in fire services." Last month, Blanchette was ho- noured with the Fire Service Wom- en of Ontario's Trailblazer Award. It is presented to a FSWO member who has contributed to the fire ser- vice and their community and proven to be an innovative leader who has blazed a trail for others. What interested you in emer- gency services as a career? "I worked as a health-care aid and I connected with the residents. I was trained in first aid and CPR and a couple of times residents were choking and I had to step in. The administrators suggested I look into emergency services, so I applied." Blanchette was hired as a part- time paramedic in Waterloo Re- gion, but eventually became inter- ested in another area of emergency services. Why did you decide to be- come a firefighter? "I loved the idea of a physical job, meeting people and helping make things better. (As a paramed- ic) We worked quite closely with the firefighters. You would see them cutting people out of cars and it intrigued me, so I applied to the fire department." Blanchette was hired by the Town of Oakville in October of 1994, becoming the town's first fe- male firefighter. Was it difficult being the on- ly female firefighter? "There were no other women in Oakville, so I had to make my own way. I had always worked closely with men, even as a paramedic, so I had no issue. You're part of a team and you do your job. It feels very normal and it didn't seem like a big deal to me." Though she originally resisted any special attention that came with being the lone female fire- fighter, Blanchette came to appre- ciate the part she could play in en- couraging other women to become firefighters. "I didn't realize I was missing anything (in terms of having a role model) until our deputy chief ar- rived. Until I saw her in a position ahead of me, I never realized the value, even if it is a subconscious thing, of noticing yourself further on in your career and the path you might take. "Early on, they would always bring me out for recruiting events or photo opportunities. I felt more comfortable taking a step back and I always wondered, why am I get- ting all this attention? Now I see that it was important. If you don't see it, you don't know if you can be it. You have to be in the public eye so that other young girls see it as a possible career path." NEWS LOCAL FIREFIGHTER RECOGNIZED AS TRAILBLAZER BLANCHETTE HONOURED WITH PRESTIGIOUS AWARD HERB GARBUTT hgarbutt@metroland.com Joanne Blanchette, assistant platoon chief with the Oakville Fire Department, recently received a Trailblazer Award from Fire Service Women Ontario. Graham Paine/Metroland