Chief Lee Shurtleff of the Groton Fire Department in Tompkins County was installed as president of the New York State Association of Fire Chiefs (NYSAFC) on June 13, 2020. He will serve a one-year term leading the statewide not-for-profit organization, which represents more than 10,000 career and volunteer fire chiefs, officers, and emergency services personnel.
Shurtleff has been a member of the Citizens Hook & Ladder Co. #3 of the Groton Fire Department since 1985, serving as department chief from 1991-1998. He served as the director of the Tompkins County Department of Emergency Response from 2002-2019, where he directed programs for fire, EMS, emergency management, 911 and public safety communications. Previously, he was a full-time deputy coordinator and served for nine years as commissioner of elections for Tompkins County.