53. William Schuckmann (1986-1987)
Served 2 Years
William Schuckmann (Bill) is the Great-grandson of Hicksville natives, Gottlieb and Emma (Riner) Schuckmann. William was born in December of 1855 and like many of Hicksville’s early settlers, Bill’s family emigrated from Germany, set up residence in Queens, before settling in Hicksville. Gottlieb was a Gold Beater and Silversmith living on John Street. Just seven years after the Hicksville Fire Department was organized, Bill Sr. joined as a volunteer firefighter with Independent Engine and Hose Company 2. Chief Schuckmann’s father, William followed in the footsteps of his father, joining as a member of the Hicksville Volunteer Fire Department at age 21, in 1950. He was first a member of Independent Engine Company 2 before transferring to Emergency Company Five.
William Schuckmann (Bill) was born September 29, 1952, to William and Dorothy (Law). He attended and graduated from Hicksville High School in 1970. Bill has a younger brother George. Bill’s spouse is Barbara Von Grerichten.
Bill would become a 3rd Generation volunteer firefighter on November 9, 1971, when he was just 21 years old. At the same time, he went to work as a laborer with the Hicksville Water District in 1971. Bill knew he had time to devote to his community and fire department, so he submitted his application to Floodlight Company 8.
Bill was employed by the Hicksville Water District from 1971 through 2010. He worked his way up the ladder, starting as laborer, then foreman and eventually superintendent of the Hicksville Water District.
Bill was very active and continued to move on up through the ranks as an officer in Company 8. He was elected and served as 1st Lieutenant in 1974 and 1975 and was subsequently elected as their 7th Captain in 1976, a position he held until 1979. His Lieutenants were Dominick D’Antuono serving as 1st Lieutenant along with Robert Becker as 2nd Lieutenant.
When Bill left as Captain, he was elected at the age of 28 as 3 rd Assistant Chief. He would serve as 3rd, 2nd, and 1st Assistant Chief until he was elected the 53rd Chief to serve the Hicksville Fire Department. In early December, Bill took over for Owen Magee as the Chief of Department who went onto work in the district.
A raging fire at a local office building at 82 Broadway caused close to one million dollars in damage when the pre-dawn fire gutted the second floor and roof of the three-story structure. The fire on the second floor was above the ceiling when firefighters arrived at 4:00 AM, encountering heavy fire throughout the second floor. Firefighters were ordered out of the structure after the walls began to crack from the intense heat and began to break away. Efforts to contain and extinguish the flames were made from outside and above via tower ladders. The fire’s origin was considered suspicious since the front door was found open when firefighters arrived. The building, which is owned by BL Associates of Huntington, has a parking garage on the first floor.
In just a few short months later, a delicatessen on Old Country Road was destroyed and five other stores at the Centerview Shopping Centre suffered smoke and water damage,which had been termed suspicious. The 2:00 AM blaze at the New Country Deli, 26 Old Country Road which was completely gutted.
There was an intense gas fired oven at the DePew Company located at 359 Duffy Avenue. The main body of the fire was over the oven area. Three employees were treated at local hospitals for smoke inhalation. Firefighters pulled a LILCO worker from a resin leaching pond outside the building after he fell into it.
A fire at McDaniel Ford, on February 7th at 217 Bethpage Road, caused considerable damage to the 2nd floor and smoke and water damage to the main floor, before being extinguished. The fire began in a second-floor storage room prior to the alarm and the fire departments responded.
Chemical Plant fire interrupted Thanksgiving’s dinner for a lot of firefighters when fire struck the Rucco plant on New South Road. The fire started in an isolated building involving a heat process unit. The smoky blaze, involving burning oil was extinguished in ninety minutes. No injuries were reported although some firefighting equipment had to be discarded due to oil contamination.
Ten New York Telephone workers were treated for dizziness, nausea and chest pains after carbon-monoxide fumes spread through their office building at 25 West Barclay Street. In March of 1975 Bill was one of the local graduates that had previously completed a 180-hour emergency medical technician course. He was one of the first on Long Island to be certified by the New York State Department of Health as a paramedic. His training included such techniques as: defibrillating victims of cardiac arrest, stabilizing heart patients at the scene of heart attacks, and will be in constant communication through Nassau County’s Emergency Service System with cardiologists and emergency personnel at the hospital of destination. He learned and practiced their skills while riding on Nassau County Police ambulances during assigned tours of duty where they applied their classroom skills during actual emergencies in the field. In addition, they were assigned observation time in the Coronary Intensive Care units of local hospitals and in the Psychiatric Emergency areas. Although the training was painful at times to the AMT’s, they developed a deeper appreciation of this special skill. The introduction of the AMT program also brought the necessary telemetry equipment and drug supplies to apply this program to Hicksville residents.
The Department’s Hazardous Material Response Team hosted a seminar for firefighters from the tri-state area. The training session was given by Hazmat Training Specialist from Safety Systems of Jacksonville, Florida. The training focused on handling hazardous material leaks, spills, and fires. Control of hazardous materials spill and leaks, many under pressure, required the development of special skills. Most fire departments in recent years have been faced with an increase in hazardous materials accidents. The Safety System Team has provided valuable assistance for a small fee to firefighters, and they provided hands-on training plus classroom discussion and theory to help team members sharpen their skills.
Bill would serve as Fire Commissioner of the Hicksville Fire District from 1989-2003 and serve as Chairman in 1992, 1996, 1997 and 2002.
In 2015 and 2016, Bill would serve a second term as Captain of Floodlight/Heavy Rescue Company 8. 45-year veteran, Bill Schuckmann was elected as the 27th Captain to serve Company 8. During his second term, Bill was elected to help the Company through its many challenges that confront the members.
He served on many Company and Department committees and was a member of the Exempts Benevolent Association. He would serve as the Labor Day Tournament and Parade Committee and served as their chairman in 1992 and as Honorary Grand Marshal in 1994.
Ex-Chief Schuckmann had the honor of being selected as one of the Co-Chairs along with Ex-Chief Wigdzinski and Assistant Chief Schweitzer to plan and organize the Department’s 100th Anniversary. In February the department kicked off the year-long celebration by having the oldest Ex-Chiefs open the meeting. The meeting was moved to coincide with the actual charter date of 1893. Following the meeting the members made their way across the street to the old firehouse, now Peppercorns, for refreshments in the upstairs meeting hall.
In June, after three years of planning, a grand parade kicked off at 6:15 PM in a spectacular display of color, honor, precision and sound, as the department marked its 100th Anniversary that surpassed any parade in Hicksville history. Sixty-three fire departments - two from as far away as Ohio and New Hampshire- marched in brilliant form through the streets of Hicksville. The parade was only one of many events that were held in honor of the fire department's centennial. A nightly carnival and a firemen's drill were among the other festivities. Thousands of people lined the two-mile parade route. The parade was preceded by a carnival held on East Marie Street for five days. Adjacent to the carnival was a food court staffed by local Hicksville organizations given an opportunity to raise funds for their groups. There was a fireworks extravaganza in the parking lot next to Station 1 and the famous Country Music group “Six-Gun” played for an evening under the stars.
The Department also played host to the 98th annual Southern New York State Volunteer Firefighters' Association Convention. The last time this was held in Hicksville was in 1902 and 1908. The convention included the racing tournament with entries from across Long Island and Westchester. The entire year was also highlighted with a 100th anniversary department picnic and installation dinner.
Bill has been a member of the Hicksville-Jericho Rotary Club since 1996. During his tenure, he has served as President on two separate occasions. Bill continues to serve as a member of the board of directors to this day. In February 2003, Bill received his first Paul Harris recognition in honor of his presidency. In June 2022, the club recognized him a second time for his continuing service to both the Hicksville- Jericho Rotary club and his community.
Bill Schuckmann joined the Hicksville Water District Board of Commissioners in September 2014. Commissioner Schuckmann has been an active member of the American Water Works Association (AWWA), Long Island Water Conference (LIWC) and New York State Water Conference throughout his tenure. In 2020 at a meeting held by Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association (NSWCA), Bill took over as President of the Association which consists of water commissioners representing 21 water districts across Nassau and Suffolk Counties and serves more than 625,000 Long Islanders.
He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Hicksville Chamber of Commerce. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Hicksville Rotary Club, for which he previously served as president in 2001 and 2006. In addition, for the past two years he has been a dedicated committee member for the Special Olympics held at Cantiague Park.
