Although he isn’t completely used to the title yet, James Schulenburg has been preparing for his role as Prairie du Sac’s new fire chief ever since former Fire Chief Jim Hambrecht started talking about retiring.
“Jim started talking about retiring last year,” Schulenburg said. “We knew it was coming and he’s been preparing us.”
Schulenburg joined the department in 2006, wanting to give back in some way to the community. He was inspired by his friend, the late Nick Anderson who died while in service with the U.S. Marines.
“At one point I had contemplated going into the military myself,” Schulenburg said. “But I realized I could (join the fire department) while also keeping my current job. So I came here and found a good group of people and I got hooked after that.”