EVERETT — Murray Gordon grew up on the hill near Forest Park.
It was a neighborhood where kids sledded in the snow and deer darted through the backyard.
His parents, a dairy products salesman and a dietician, often repeated time-old sayings. One favorite was, “If you’re going to do something, do it right.” Another one was finish what you start.
Gordon went on to Everett High School and Everett Community College. Color blindness put an end to his dream of being a military pilot. People close to him suggested the fire department.
In 1977, Gordon became an Everett firefighter.
“It was one of the best decisions of my life,” he said.
About five years later, he was trained as one of the city’s first paramedics. He moved up the ranks. In 2001, he was summoned to meet with then-Mayor Ed Hansen at Evergreen Lanes. Between bowling frames, Hansen asked Gordon to be the fire chief.
Gordon on Thursday announced that he plans to retire in January, after 40 years. The city expects to share plans for the position in October.
It wasn’t an easy job. Gordon oversaw life-saving operations for fires and medical emergencies in Snohomish County’s biggest city. He also juggled relationships with the mayor, the City Council, the public, the labor union, business leaders and the folks who run the budget.
“You have to take that pressure and try to create a balance where you’re keeping in mind all of your duties and responsibilities,” he said.
The job meant caring for people who were sick or hurt. It also was about being a mentor and then a boss. There were days that were extraordinary and days that were terrible.
Gordon once got to bring a young girl out of her burning home along Mukilteo Boulevard. He helped save a boy who was struck by lightning at Jackson Park.
In one of the most difficult moments of his career, his team provided medical aid to Eli Creekmore, the 3-year-old Everett boy who had suffered fatal abuse from his father.
“That was very hard for all of us,” Gordon said. “We came into that situation thinking we could make a difference and we couldn’t.”
Gordon has four children and six grandchildren. That means going to soccer games and getting a Facebook page.
For more than 20 years, he also has worked as a referee for youth sports, including Little League and high school football, which he once played. His family likes ski trips, but at 62, Gordon does the cooking instead of the skiing.
He’s proud of his family, and he’s proud of having led a fire department whose culture combined teamwork, action and caution, he said.
Everett was a great place to grow up, he said, and to stay.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @rikkiking.
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