Raisin Township officers honored for life-saving efforts during fire

Raisin Township Police Chief Kevin Grayer, left, and Officer Michael Rockette were presented with life-saving awards during the Raisin Township Board’s pre-meeting Monday, April 13. They were commended for their roles in rescuing a woman from a fire March 18 at her mobile home in Lee Villa Estates.

By DAVID PANIAN

davidp@tecumsehherald.com

RAISIN TWP. — For their efforts to help rescue a woman from her mobile home after a fire broke out, two Raisin Township police officers were presented with commendations Monday.

Chief Kevin Grayer and Officer Michael Rockette were both presented with life-saving awards during the township board’s pre-meeting. Both “went above and beyond the call,” township supervisor Deb Brousseau said in presenting the awards.

Grayer was the first to arrive after the Raisin Township Fire Department was dispatched at 4:51 a.m. March 18 to a fire at Lee Villa Estates on Gady Road. Rockette arrived shortly after Grayer.

The chief was on patrol near Lee Villa when the fire department was dispatched, Grayer said in an interview March 24. He saw the smoke and drove into the mobile home park and found that a porch on one of the homes had caught fire. The fire blocked the front door, and after Grayer tried to put out the blaze with a fire extinguisher, he started looking for another way in or out of the home.

Rockette; two Lenawee County deputy sheriffs, Jesus Rincon and Brennen Wright; and two Tecumseh police officers, Jacob Biek and Sgt. Sam Spicer, also arrived to assist.

Grayer used the extinguisher to break out a window. The resident inside was still on the phone with the Lenawee County Dispatch Center, so the officers were able to communicate through the dispatchers to have her come to the window where they could pull her out to safety, Brousseau said.

Firefighters arrived a few minutes later and put out the fire, Brousseau said.

“Fortunately, the lady was not hurt and they were able to get her out in time,” Brousseau said. “It was very close.”

The plaques presented to Grayer and Rockette read: “In recognition of your courageous and life saving actions at the scene of a Structure Fire on March 18, 2026. You put yourself in harm’s way to save another human life with dedication and courage.”

The officers were accompanied at the meeting Monday by relatives and their fellow officers on the township police department.

In other business

The Raisin Township Board at its meeting Monday also:

• Voted 7-0 to accept a bid from Emerson Concrete of Adrian to do concrete work outside the Raisin Community Center for $10,400. The township’s public works crew will remove the existing concrete using rented equipment. The work will be paid for with a grant the township received from the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks.

• Voted 7-0 to authorize Brousseau to spend up to $10,000 to replace the entry doors to the Raisin Community Center. Brousseau said she would look into the cost to include door-opening buttons and run electrical power to the openers. The cost will be paid for from the township’s general fund.

• Voted 7-0 to have the township’s works department replace the moldy ceiling tiles in the fire station with a ceiling made of ribbed steel and fiberglass insulation at a cost of $2,400. The source of the moisture that led to the mold was a leaky pipe, said Brousseau and treasurer Dale Witt. The leak will be repaired, Brousseau said.

• Voted 7-0 to authorize Brousseau to spend up to $12,000 to replace three entry doors at the fire station. The cost will be paid for from the fire department’s budget. Brousseau said she would see if combining the community center and fire station door projects would lead to better pricing than what has already been quoted from various vendors on the projects individually.

• Voted 7-0 to authorize the works department to hire a seasonal, part-time employee to help with a variety of projects the department expects to do during the summer and fall. The employee’s pay will be $16 per hour, and they are expected to work two or three days each week.

• Voted 7-0 to accept the list of road projects recommended for this year by the Lenawee County Road Commission. The total cost is $857,617.75. Brousseau said this will keep the township on its five-year roads plan and put it in line to reduce its roads spending to about $450,000 in 2027.

• Voted 6-0 to hire trustee Blaine McDonald as the township’s interim ordinance enforcement officer. The township’s previous ordinance officer, Philip Schaedler, died March 28. With the position vacant, the responsibilities fell to Brousseau, who said at her age she is uncomfortable with conducting the property inspections the ordinance officer has to do. Township attorney David Lacasse said there is an exception in state law that allows municipalities with populations less than 40,000 to hire elected officials as employees for certain positions, and this position qualifies. Brousseau said McDonald will fill the role until a full-time ordinance officer can be hired, which she said could take at least a month. In the meantime, McDonald will be paid $22 per hour, working two days per week. Brousseau said there already is a list of complaints to investigate.