THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 29, 1996 TAG: 9606290214
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JANIE BRYANT, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: 75 lines
When Odell Benton retired four years ago, the ``granddaddy of fire chiefs'' received, among other gifts, a red birdhouse.
It had a fire station number on it and served as a substitute for the one thing Benton hadn't been able to accomplish in his 50-year career: a second fire station for Portsmouth's sprawling Churchland area.
The former fire chief had tried for more than 25 years to see that fire station make it into a city budget.
He worried about the one aging station, which was forced to cover longer and longer distances as new neighborhoods sprung up in an area encompassing about a third of the city.
That $1 million firehouse finally opened Friday, at River Shore Road and Cedar Lane.
``He used to say he wanted to see the new station constructed before he retired - then, it was in his lifetime,'' Fire Chief Donald Newberry told an audience at the dedication ceremony.
Benton, 74, was very much alive and present to check that last big item off his wish list Friday.
What he didn't know was that his name would live on in the fire station he had fought for for so long.
Onstage with other city officials, Newberry asked Benton to help him unveil the plaque that dedicated River Shore Station No. 3 in Benton's honor.
``I think the thing that surprised him most was when he read his name up on the plaque,'' Newberry said later. ``He stepped back to read it, after I had read it.''
And that was the second surprise of the day: City and fire officials had made up their minds two years ago to dedicate the building to Benton - and had managed to keep it a secret.
Not that Benton made it to that point in the dedication ceremony without catching on that something more was in store for him.
First he saw that his daughter, Brenda Harris, had shown up for the ceremony. Even more telling was the presence of the retired firefighters and other friends he had eaten dinner with the night before.
They had kidded him because he wanted to leave the dinner early enough to go home and lay out his clothes for the ceremony, but none of them mentioned that they'd see him there.
``Hi, you lying dog,'' he greeted most of them affectionately. ``You didn't say a word.''
After the ceremony, children from the community lined up for free fire hats and face-painting, and some of the steaming hot dogs the firefighters union provided.
Benton pulled himself away from the reunion of old friends long enough to take a tour of the new station, which is expected to cut the response time to the longest run from eight minutes to four.
Vice Mayor Johnny M. Clemons had told the audience how one city councilman had ``affectionately'' referred to the firehouse as the ``new Portsmouth fire station, recreation and conference center'' because of its 13,000 square feet.
In the pristine garage that will house two fire companies and the regional hazardous-materials team, giant tentacles of an automated exhaust system hung from the ceiling, ready to attach to vehicles.
The smell of new paint and the cool, carpeted comfort of the new blue-and-gray interior were a far cry from the old paneled headquarters that was home to Benton for so many years.
A workout room is filled with fitness equipment donated by the YMCA of Portsmouth and will be used by firefighters and police.
``They must have said yes to every damned thing you asked for,'' Benton said to Fire Chief Newberry.
Newberry laughed, but later he gave the credit to Benton.
``He really laid the groundwork for everything.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos by MARK MITCHELL, The Virginian-Pilot
Former Portsmouth fire chief Odell Benton retired four years ago,
but on Friday he saw a dream come true. The city's new $1 million
firehouse was dedicated in honor of his 50-year service.
The Churchland station, at the corner of River Shore Road and Cedar
Lane, has 13,000 square feet of space. by CNB