Ed Plumlee has been part of the Federal Way community for over two decades, spending much of that time serving the community in some form or another.

Plumlee, a longtime King County Medic One employee, a former South King Fire assistant chief and an involved Kiwanis member, was born in Seattle on March 14, 1955. Plumlee said that on his mom’s side of the family, there’s deep roots in Washington, citing that at Boeing Field in Seattle, there’s a plaque for a man named Jacob Maple, an ancestor of his who was one of the first settlers in Seattle.

Plumlee said that they eventually moved to Burien, where he grew up most of his life. His dad’s family was from Idaho, with Plumlee’s grandfather working as a miner until he died of black lung disease. When his grandfather died, his grandmother, along with his dad, moved to Burien.

Plumlee’s dad was in World War II, and after leaving the military, he met Plumlee’s mom and started working for the U.S. Postal Service, where he would sort letters and respond to letters to Santa. Plumlee said growing up, his mom mostly stayed at home raising the family. As a kid, he and other kids would play army, baseball and football for fun.

“It was kind of free range a little bit. You’re allowed to go out, and you weren’t monitored a great deal,” Plumlee said. “If you heard whistling, you knew to come home. But for the most part, you played with other kids in the neighborhood.”

A formative experience he had as a kid was going to his uncle’s house in Spokane to work on his farm. Another formative experience was around middle school, when he helped his older brother build parts of a house and build other things for homes. Plumlee said that it taught him a lot about problem-solving

But the formative experience that got him thinking about fire service was when, starting in middle school, his mom would take him to watch fire drills at a fire department in Silverdale. Plumlee said that growing up watching his uncle, a fire chief, made him determined to work for a fire department, and ultimately, he wanted to be a fire chief.

“I made my mind up at a very young age that I wanted to be that, and I want to frankly be a fire chief, that’s what I decided,” Plumlee said. “Maybe an example of some sort of goal you set for yourself, and then you work toward it and achieve it. That’s kind of the nature of me, a little bit, that sort of goal setting.”

Plumlee graduated from Highline High School in 1973, the same school that his father graduated from in 1941.

After high school, he stuck around the area because his wife, Gloria, is a year younger than he is, so he started volunteering at the Burien Fire Department, and he worked in construction until he got hired onto the Burien Fire Department in 1977.

Plumlee said that in 1981, he transitioned from being a firefighter and became certified as a King County Medic One paramedic. Plumlee said that they would get dispatched all around South King County to incidents where an advanced level of care was needed.

In 1986, he bought a five-acre parcel near Star Lake and built the home he still lives in. Plumlee said back then that the area was considered Federal Way, but it is now in unincorporated King County.

He initially wanted to work in fire, but at the time, working as a paramedic for King County Medic One was the place to be. Plumlee was a medic with Medic One for 12 years, transitioned to a shift supervisor, and ultimately was assigned the chief position at Medic One for five years. Plumlee said that the Chief position at Medic One fulfilled his childhood ambition to become a fire chief.

One thing he did at Medic One in the chief position was establish an EMS levy model that is still around. Plumlee said that the Federal Way Fire Department — which is now called South King Fire — was looking to do something similar to the Medic One levy. Plumlee said that alongside his experience with the EMS levy experience and having taught classes in Federal Way, it helped him get a job at South King Fire as the medical services officer in 2001.

After being in a few different positions, in 2014, he became the assistant chief, coordinating the construction of fire stations and fire apparatuses. Plumlee said he had a lot of help, and the firefighters are the ones who are really important.

“The only reason you’re there is because those guys are going to go out and fight fires. So that’s the important thing, frankly, is the officers and firefighters going to the scene,” Plumlee said. “That’s what we’re all there for. If it wasn’t for that, we wouldn’t be necessary at all.”

Since retiring from the fire service in 2017, Plumlee spends his time volunteering for Kiwanis in Federal Way, an organization he joined in 2001. Kiwanis raises funds for nonprofits and Key Clubs at high schools in Federal Way. Plumlee said he served as president of the Federal Way Kiwanis twice, but now he’s just a regular member.

Plumlee has three kids and seven grandkids, so he often spends time with family. All his kids attended Thomas Jefferson High School. He said his youngest boy is now a captain at the Renton Fire Department.

Plumlee said he also enjoys traveling often with people from the fire department. He’s gone on hiking trips with people from the fire department in Europe. He and his wife also travel together, and they recently went to Nova Scotia.

Regarding some of his favorite things about Federal Way, Plumlee said he enjoys the Asian food, and his favorite spot is Pho Trang. He said he also thinks the PAEC is cool, and he likes Centerstage Theatre.