On Sunday January 8, 2023 an official swearing in ceremony was held at City Hall for our new Chief of Department, Shawn T. Hoffman, 1st Assistant Chief Nicolas Pierro, and 2nd Assistant Chief Michael McCrady Jr.
Past Chiefs Craig Haigh, James W. Schermerhorn Jr, and Anthony F. DeMarco Jr. and Past Assistant Chief Charles "Chucky" Hoffman (Shawns Dad), joined in the ceremony to honor the new Chiefs. The audience consisted of department members, family, friends, Hudson Police Department Chief Edward Moore and Officers, as well as members of the Greenport, Stottville, Claverack, Niverville, Catskill, and Athens Fire Departments (sorry of we missed any).
Remarks were delivered by Mayor Kamal Johnson, with Common Council President Thomas DePietro looking on.
Each new Chief was introduced by Commissioner of Fire Timothy Hutchings after which new badges were pinned onto their uniform by family members.
Once pinned, each Chief was sworn into office by City Clerk Tracy Delaney.
A luncheon followed at the J. W. Hoysradt Hose Co.#8 fire station located across from city hall.
Now, a little more about your new Chief, and his Assistant Chiefs;
Chief of Department Shawn T. Hoffman
Shawn is well known and respected in the area fire service for his firefighting skills, tactical experience and leadership. Shawn is a firm believer in training hard and working even harder at incidents. He has completed numerous NYS Fire Training schools as well as locally sponsored professional fire training seminars.
Shawn grew up in Greenport, resides in Hudson girlfriend, Reghan and daughter Livia. He is employed by the New York State Thruway Authority, Catskill Division
1998 Explorer with Hudson at H. W. Rogers Hose Co. #2, and the Greenport Fire District
2002 Joined Greenport Fire District with Pumper Company #1.
2005 Transferred to Hudson with J.W. Hoysradt Hose Company # 8., where he rose to the rank of Captain.
2015 Appointed to the rank of 2nd Asst. Chief by Chief James W. Schermerhorn Jr.
2017 Appointed to the Rank of 1st Asst Chief by Chief Anthony F. DeMarco Jr.
Shawn is a 3rd Generation firefighter with our department; joining his Grandfather Charles, and his father, former Assistant Chief Charles Hoffman Jr. As a side note, The Hoffman name has been associated with HFD since 1881
1st Assistant Chief Nicolas Pierro
Nick is a lifelong Hudson Resident and lives in the “Chiefs Row Neighborhood” with his wife Amanda, daughter Katelyn, and son Jace Victor. Nick is a Detective with the City of Hudson Police Department.
1998 - Explorer with H.W. Rogers Hose Co. #2 in 1998
2002 Joined H. W. Rogers Hose Co. #2
2005 Nick was appointed as a police officer with the Hudson Police Department and forced to transfer (due to PD policy) to A.B. Shaw Fire company in Claverack, and later transferred to the Greenport Fire District with Greenport Pumper Co. #1
2010 – Returned to Hudson FD with H.W. Rogers Hose Co. #2 when a policy change was enacted by the Chief of Police in Hudson.
2014 – Appointed to the rank of Station Captain of the Central Station by Chief Craig Haigh and reappointed to this position in
2015 by Chief James W. Schermerhorn Jr.
2017 – Appointed to the rank of 2nd Asst Chief by Chief Anthony F. DeMarco Jr.
As Assistant Chief – Nick has spearheaded several successful equipment funding campaigns including grants and donations for equipment, city funded replacement of 41 older self contained breathing apparatus, was instrumental in coordinating the purchase of the new Tower Ladder, and coordinated a grant through Member of Assembly Didi Barretts office to replace outdated UHF portable radios with new multiband units to improve interoperability. His efforts have also led our department to move from our remaining paper-based records to digital based information systems. This includes the installation of Ipads in all front line apparatus with mapping, hydrant, and building information as well as equipping our command vehicles with the ability to complete National Fire Incident Reporting System reports remotely, and in many cases while still on the scene.
Nick is a 3rd Generation firefighter with our department joining his father Victor, and his grandfather Carmine A. Pierro in service
2nd Assistant Chief Michael McCrady Jr.
Mike moved to Hudson with his family as a young man from Gilroy California. He resides in Greenport with his Wife Jennifer and Son Tate. Mike has been employed by R.C. Lacy Ford/Subaru in Catskill for the past 18 years and is currently the Used Car Manager.
1998 – Explorer with H. W. Rogers Hose Co. #2
2002 - Joined HFD with H.W. Rogers Hose Co. #2.
2017 – Elected Station Captain for Central Station a position he held until his appointment to the rank of 2nd Assistant Chief by Chief Hoffman.
He has completed many fire training schools at an advanced level, in topics such as fire attack, Amtrak emergencies, auto extrication, as well as collaborating with National Grid to facilitate training for members in natural gas and electrical emergencies. His efforts secured the donation of state-of-the-art laser combustible gas detection equipment from the utility.
While at work, Mike participates in the Catskill Fire Department “Ride Along Program”. With the support of his employer, Mike is able to answer emergency calls with Catskill FD during critical times of the day when manpower is limited for volunteer fire departments.
The members and officers of the City of Hudson Fire Department
congratulate these fine leaders and wish you the best in your new roles.