Nearly a month after he was privately sworn in as chief of the Akron Fire Department, Leon Henderson took to the Akron Civic Theatre’s Knight Stage on Tuesday afternoon to make his promotion official.
In front of a packed room of city officials and fire department employees, Mayor Shammas Malik spoke about Henderson’s “unwavering determination” and his positive outlook on life. Albert Bragg Jr., executive director of Alpha Phi Alpha Homes and former City of Akron fire prevention bureau manager, spoke about their decades-long friendship and Henderson’s willingness to help him with his health and physical fitness.
“Leon is like my brother from another mother,” Bragg said. “He got the height, I got the hair.”
Henderson, 58, then took to the podium and repeatedly highlighted a religious calling to help people and a sense of purpose to work in the fire department in his hometown. He recalled an incident when he was nine years old when he nearly died in an Akron park.
“I drowned, I was in a coma.” Henderson said. He was in the hospital for a day and a half. “When I’m drowning, I said, ‘God, is it time for me to die?’ God said ‘No, there’s more purpose for you – it’s to help people.’”
After four years in the U.S. Army and after earning a degree from the University of Akron, Henderson began his career with the AFD in 1990. He rose through the ranks as a firefighter/paramedic, dispatch supervisor lieutenant and captain safety officer before being promoted to district chief (2018) and deputy chief (2022).
Henderson replaces Joseph Natko, who in March announced his retirement from the department and transitioned to a new role with the city as assistant to the mayor for emergency management.
A new journey, new opportunities to engage with the public
The new chief told the crowd on Monday that “this is a journey I truly didn’t seek out. I never sought out to be chief of the fire department. It really didn’t mean anything to me. I just wanted to help people.” (Henderson did post on Instagram in November 2022 that he interviewed twice for the chief position but didn’t get offered the job then.)
He said that when he met with Malik after he became mayor, he realized he wanted the job.
He was nervous during the job interview “because [Malik] looks with this intensity that just looks right through you. He sees your soul. And that’s when I realized that’s the man I want to work for, because he sees me through all my imperfections, through all my fallacies.”
Henderson, in fact, was ready to step away from the fire department before landing the role.
“Time is the most valuable thing that I can’t get back,” he said. “I was prepared to retire, I don’t know if any of you know that, but God said there’s more purpose. And what that purpose is, as I look at your faces out here in front of me, I know what my purpose is.”
He thanked his wife, Sarah, and his 2 1/2 -year-old son, Abraham, for allowing him to spend that time in the fire department.
Henderson repeatedly emphasized relationship building.
He said he discovered that there were nearly 2,400 streets in the City of Akron: “That means we have 2,400 opportunities to engage with the public, to show them preventative measures, to mitigate things before they start, to have that community engagement. That’s what we’re here for.”
Henderson will be available to meet with residents and answer questions at a town hall scheduled for Wednesday, July 10, at 5 p.m. at the Akron Summit Public Library downtown.
