East Manatee Fire Rescue honors its top firefighters of 2024

Two East Manatee Fire Rescue firefighters talked about their love of their job, and how the thing that makes it so worthwhile is that they work every day with their department family.

So Lt. Robert Day and Engineer Dominick Reale were proud of the awards they earned March 18 because they were selected by those same firefighting family members.

Day received the Officer of the Year award while Reale was named Firefighter of the Year. The nominations for the annual awards come from their peers.

The awards were an interesting representation of what those peers value. Neither earned their awards primarily for their work in the field. Day earned the respect of his peers for his comeback from a serious boating accident in which he suffered a catastrophic injury to his femur and was out of work a year. His perseverance through that year of uncertainly — doctors originally told him he might never walk again — eventually led to a return to duty.

Reale put together a Trunk or Treat event last Oct. 27 at Station 1 in Lakewood Ranch after the area had been hit with a series of hurricanes. He thought the community needed a fun event to come together. His selfless work in organizing the event was much appreciated by his coworkers, as well as the community.

"I was very surprised (at earning the award)," said Day, who has been a firefighter for 19 years. "But when I saw my wife (Amber Day) and my sister (Cyndi Weitzel) walk in, I thought I was getting an accommodation or something."

He soon discovered he would be presented with one of the district's most prestigious awards.

"It was humbling, and a nice surprise," he said. 

Day has spent seven years overseeing Station 3 on Rye Road.

"I like the fact it is a more community-based station," Day said. "There is less commercial here, so we're dealing mostly with the residents. It feels like home. As a lieutenant, I run my station, my engine company, my crew. I love the job itself." 

Day is a U.S. Army veteran who made a decision with his wife Amber not to re-enlist after his initial four-year term to live a civilian life. But in doing so, he wanted something similar to his military life. He became a firefighter.

"I like the structure, the guys, the team atmosphere," he said. "When they say it is the greatest job ... it really is."

His boating accident on May 4, 2023 threatened to end that job. But he went to work.

"My comeback, (his peers) were familiar with it. I set up a gym in my garage. My wife and I are a good team. We've been married 30 years, but I think the accident made us closer."

Amber and Robert have three boys — Ryan (29), Jacob (24) and Brandon (19).

Reale, like Day, was surprised he was presented with his award.

"It was a nice gesture," he said.

Although Reale, who is 27, doesn't come from generations of firefighters, he remembered seeing the "big, red trucks" and how excited he was to see them. He later entered the "Explorer" program which he said was "like being a junior firefighter."

In 2024, he was promoted to engineer.

He said an engineer typically drives the truck, but also is the pump operator. But he said a good engineer has to have situational awareness and must be a buffer between the officer and the firefighters.

"You have to know what the officer is thinking," he said.

He has worked for East Manatee Fire Rescue for six years and was a private ambulance worker before that since 2015. 

"I like that (as a firefighter) you never see the same thing twice," he said. "I didn't want to walk into a cubicle every day.

"I also like the camaraderie we have here. People have your back."

Reale said his goal is to be a battalion chief one day.

He especially likes the community relations aspect of his job.

'We go to Publix, the kids see us, and we hand out hats," he said with a big smile.