By Jenel Hunt
James Massey turns 72 on Saturday. As well as being his birthday, this month marks 50 years – virtually his entire adult life – of being a volunteer firefighter.
In many ways, his very identity has been shaped by this half century of involvement. He even has a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) to show for it.
But back when he was just shy of his 22nd birthday, James had no idea of what awaited him. He joined the Liston Rural Fire Brigade because it was the expected thing to do.
“The graziers and the farmers – whoever lived on the land, really – joined the Rural Fire Brigade. It was just what you did to protect your community,” he said.
Now, it’s not simply what he does. It’s who he is. James is the First Officer of the Sugarloaf Rural Fire Brigade and has been since 2010. He was a foundation member of the brigade when it started in 1994.
There have been black moments and proud moments. He saw much of Girraween National Park and Bald Rock National Park go up in flames during the terrible bushfires of 2019.
“It was a holocaust. Not a living thing could have survived it. I had to stand there knowing I couldn’t do anything to stop it. The water bombers couldn’t stop it. No one could,” said James.
“What we witnessed that night, most of us had never seen before and hopefully will never see again.”
One of his proudest moments was the day that he stood with his firey friends Roni Bau and Bill Humble and they were presented with their Diligent and Ethical Service Medals in 2016.
“That recognition, with those two mates, meant a lot to me,” he said.
Of course his OAM – received for his work in emergency response organisations – has been a highlight of his life. And he is extremely proud to have been asked to be a member of the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services’ State Board of the Operational and Strategic Working Group, which meets about four times a year for discussions on operational considerations involving trucks and uniforms.
“I do that with great pride and can say that I have only ever missed one meeting in eight years.”
James says that a sense of community and civic duty are in his DNA.
“My great great grandfather was the first Senator for Victoria in 1901, so he was one of the six founding fathers of Federation.
“My grandfather was the Member for Toowong and the Deputy Lord Mayor of Brisbane and the Leader of the Opposition.
“Mum had polio as a 16-year-old in England so she spent much of her life using a crutch or a walker and eventually a wheelchair. She was an incredibly determined person, though. She actually singlehandedly got disabled parking brought to Australia. She spent 11 years of her life to do it.”
But even though he says his sense of civic pride was imbued in him by those who have gone before, James gives his immediate family unstinting praise.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do it without Lorraine and our four boys. They’ve been very supportive. For 42 of the 50 years I’ve been a firefighter, Lorraine has watched me go out the door to a fire and not been sure I’d walk back in.
“She understands this is something I’ve had to do, but I’ll admit that I’m preparing a person to take my place – you know, doing a bit of succession planning. The boys say, ‘Go and enjoy your life now’.”
James remembers during the 2019 Granite Belt fires when a TV news reporter asked him what he would say to people who had lost their homes at the area behind the wine college.
“I said straight away, ‘You can replace a home; you can’t replace a life’. He said to me, ‘You seem to know exactly what you’re talking about.’ And I did. Our home at Wilson’s Downfall burned down in 1991 and our son was inside but got out. He’s irreplaceable, but a house can be rebuilt. I think that has been a big part of how I have felt ever after, doing whatever I could to protect people’s lives.”
He has saved people’s lives in the years he has worked as a firefighter, and it’s something that he doesn’t particularly want to talk about except to say, “You do that for your mates.”
During the 2019 fire, he was sent to the aerodrome to co-ordinate the water bombers.
“We had 81 bombings on one day. They were landing on the ground, filling up with 3000 litres of water and then flying out again in less than 10 minutes.”
James was an air observer with the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services for 12 years. He recalls one trip with pride.
“The plane would come down to Stanthorpe to pick me up and we’d fly to Roma. If we found a fire we’d go over the top of it. I remember we spotted a fire at Pittsworth this day, we went over the fire at the top and I asked the pilot to make a couple of circles. The bloke in the red truck below asked over the radio, ‘What do you want to tell me?’ I said, ‘Where you are, you don’t have to worry. That horse stud is flogged so you’ll only have to worry about embers; keep an eye on the house. The fire’s travelling north – even though it’s a roaring westerly wind, the fire has to travel where the fuel load is. There’s a car on the opposite side of the road to you, I imagine the kids park it there and then catch the school bus.’
“That night the area manager rang and said he’d had a phone call from the urbans. My first reaction was that I’d said something wrong to them, but actually they’d sent me a compliment. They said the information I’d given them, they’d never had such vital information.”
James has had an interesting working life.
After school, he became a stock and station agent and was sent to Longreach, Winton, Goondiwindi, Bundaberg, Brisbane and Bowen.
In 1972 he went to England to learn about artificial insemination (AI) for cattle, a science that was in its very early years.
“Then one day Dad told me I’d better get home, so I said I’d see him in three months and caught a bus to Kathmandu,” he said.
He raised sheep and cattle at the Wilson’s Downfall property, Greenwood, and had a small motor and equipment centre for 10 years. Along the way he also had a close relationship with Granite Belt Support Services when he rented a building to them then ended up being their board chairman.
One of his volunteering positions was with the local high school, teaching a Certificate II in Fire Fighting.
“We used to have 16 students at a time. It wasn’t a pre-apprenticeship program but it did give them a certificate, which stood them in good stead when they applied for a job.
“Roni Bau did more than I ever did with the course, but it was a great experience. I like to think that they will always remember the lessons we gave them.”
James is also well known as the compere of the Apple and Grape Harvest Festival’s grand parade and co-compere at the Stanthorpe Show.
“My eldest son said to me one day, ‘You’ve always said, “Never die wondering”. You won’t that.’
“No, I won’t.”
