Chief Kenneth Shultz started his fire service career in 1979 as a reserve firefighter for the Rural/Metro Fire Department in Green Valley, AZ. In 1982, he transitioned to full-time Firefighter/EMT. Chief Shultz spent more than 2 decades as a firefighter for Rural/Metro Fire Department serving as a Firefighter/EMT, Firefighter/IEMT, Firefighter/Paramedic, Driver/Operator and Safety Officer. In 2001 he transitioned to the Green Valley Fire District where he served as Fire Captain/Paramedic, Safety Officer, Operations Support Captain and Acting Battalion Chief from 2001-2014 before his retirement.
After a brief retirement, Chief Shultz returned to his fire service roots and became the Chief of the Helmet Peak Fire Department in March 2014. Chief Shultz is a strong advocate of firefighter safety and works with a national study to reduce firefighter cancer. He has worked to achieve several grants for Helmet Peak Fire Department.
Chief Shultz is respected among firefighters in the community he grew up in for his professionalism and his ability to build strong relations between career firefighters and volunteers. Among his achievements over his now 4 decades in the fire service, he received the EMS Star of Life Award in Washington D.C., was named Firefighter of the Year on three separate occasions, named Officer of the Year, served on numerous committees, and is currently the Secretary for the Pima County Fire Chief’s Association, is a member of the IAFC, NVFC, AFCA, AZCFSE, and the State Training Committee.