MESA, Ariz. — Show Low Arizona Fire Chief Benjamin F. Owens received a spot in Arizona's Fire Service Hall of Fame Sept. 5, an event which culminates a year of selfless service and courage as he helped in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and fought Arizona's largest wildfire in history.

"I don't know how I'd do this job without the Lord,"
\\— Fire Chief Benjamin F. Owens

The eventful year began last September. Three days after the terrorist attacks, Brother Owens arrived in New York City with a group of volunteer Arizona firefighters. For five days the men helped with recovery and manning local fire stations.

Nine months later Brother Owens found disaster in his own backyard as he tirelessly helped fight Arizona's largest wildfire. The fire not only burned out of control for nearly three weeks and encompassed more than 460,000 acres of forest land, Indian reservation, and residential communities, but it also came within a few hundred yards of his own town.

Even through the stress and sorrow of both of these experiences, Brother Owens said his testimony was strengthened.

Prior to leaving for New York, Brother Owens heard a news commentator relate on television that he had wondered over and over again, "God, where were you?" Brother Owens said that during the time he spent in New York, he couldn't help but think of that question and to know for himself that God, indeed, was there.

"He was busy making sure the airplanes weren't full, and that the buildings weren't full, and that when the buildings fell, they fell straight down instead of toppling over. I think He was very busy taking care of people," he said.

In Arizona, while fighting the Rodeo-Chediski fire that threatened his own home as well as his town, his testimony of prayer increased. He said he knew that many prayers were being offered for those fighting the fire as well as for those in the path of its destruction.

During the first week of the fire, approximately 10,000 people were evacuated from the town of Show Low, located 170 miles northeast of the Phoenix area, as fire officials were certain that the raging inferno would sweep through the town as it had through others along the Mogollon Rim. But as the fire raced toward the edge of town conditions changed dramatically — the wind stopped and humidity increased. "The fire just laid down," said Brother Owens. The town was spared.

"It was extremely easy for me to see the Lord's hand in this fire," he said. "If we thought for a minute that we did this, we'd be fooling ourselves. The Lord obviously intervened."

Brother Owens' testimony has sustained him throughout his 31-year career in the fire service. "I don't know how I'd do this job without the Lord," he said. "In many cases it's just too much, too big, and too traumatic for anybody to endure without the Lord."

Brother Owens started out as a reserve firefighter for Rural/Metro Fire Department in Tucson, Ariz., and became a full-time firefighter in 1974. He quickly moved up the ranks to become a battalion chief at the age of 28. He has served as a chief for 25 years.

For the last five years he has headed the Show Low Fire Department, helping to turn it from a volunteer to full-time staff and build new facilities.

He has also served in many ways in the communities in which he's lived and on numerous career-related committees and associations, most recently being appointed to the Arizona State Fire Safety Committee by Arizona's governor.

His years of service were rewarded when he was one of two firefighters inducted into the Fire Service Hall of Fame during the 29th Annual Arizona Fire School in Mesa.

"I really don't know why I received this honor," he said. "I've just done my job to the best of my ability for 31 years. I believe strongly in the fire service. It's more than a job, it's a way of life, a way to help people."

Not only does Brother Owens work hard in his career, but he serves faithfully in the Church and has served in many capacities including elder's quorum president and counselor in the bishopric. He has also coached community and high school football for more than 30 years.

Brother Owens credits much of his success to his wife, Cindy Shutts, to whom he's been married for 34 years. They have five children and five grandchildren. Their youngest son, Brian, is serving in the Minneapolis Minnesota Mission. He had this to say of his father: "My dad is the greatest example I have; he taught me the value of hard work and that's something that I will use for the rest of my life."