First female fire chief elected in Jefferson County

For the past 23 years, Kris Grove has been a volunteer for Station 12 in Perry Township. 

Grove said she grew up in Perry Township, in a small rural town called Valier. 

Last month, Grove was elected by her fire company to be the next fire chief of Perry Township. 

Larry McGuire, a volunteer firefighter in Punxsutawney and a writer for the Punxsutawney Spirit, told Grove that she was the first female fire chief in the county. 

McGuire told Grove that he did some digging in the county's records. 

Grove told 6 News she is honored to take on the new role. 

In 2011, Grove said that Station 12 had 142 calls. Grove said that a lot of its calls are in Jefferson and Indiana counties. 

Grove told 6 News that she had a lot to be thankful for. She thanked her husband, Glen, and daughters Brooke and Heather. Grove also thanked her fire company for showing her support.

Grove said she plans on keeping the fire company a team. She said while it is nice to have a leadership role,  she still wants to be treated equally to the other 15 active members in her company.