Retired firefighter and longtime community member Russell "Spike" Piersol has died.
Umatilla County Fire District 1 reported Piersol's death in a social media post.
Piersol spent his life living in and serving the Hermiston community, according to UCFD 1. A veteran of the Vietnam War, Piersol was an active member of American Legion Post 37 at the time of his death.
Piersol served with the Hermiston Fire Department and was an active member of the Umatilla County Fire District 1 board.
His lifetime of service to the Hermiston community included stints on the Umatilla County Fair Board, the Hermiston Fair Board, dressing up as Santa Claus during the Holidays, helping out with the Special Olympics and participating in the S.M.A.R.T. (Start making a reader today) program.