‘At home’ in Town

New subscription role for Walker, who joins Farragut Rural Metro Fire

Mike Walker recently left West Virginia to join Rural Metro Fire Fire Station 11, 160 N. Campbell Station Road, as its account executive of membership services.

After expressing interest in transferring to Tennessee, Walker’s bosses at Rural Metro’s parent company, Global Medical Response, talked to Knox County RM’s Fire Chief Jerry Harnish.

“This is the first time he’s been on the fire side (of GMR),” said Capt. Jeff Bagwell, Rural Metro Fire public information officer. “Everywhere else was in the air.

Walker has been with Global Medical Response for nine years with the air ambulance operation.

“It’s a little bit different, the air subscription versus the fire subscription, but the principle’s pretty much the same,” Bagwell said, further explaining GMR owns all Air Medical helicopters in Knox County and around, as well as fixed-wing aircraft all over the country.

“I love it here,” Walker said about coming to Tennessee and of Rural Metro. “I love serving my community and serving this fire department.

“I feel automatically at home,” he added.

In his role, Walker is responsible for sales.

“Mike’s done a great job at going out and making contacts, partnerships, with a lot of real estate agents, finance companies, HOAs because he has the ability in his position … he knows what areas he can work with them,” Bagwell said.

To learn more about subscribing, contact Walker at 865-371-7495 or Mike.Walker@gmr.net

Rural Metro Fire benefits

About the benefits of RM, “by being a subscriber, by supporting the fire department and keeping the services at the same level they are currently, then you should get savings on your homeowners insurance as well,” Bagwell said.

“Without subscriptions we can’t survive,” he added, as RM gets no county tax dollars.