Willis & Schelvie Chase

The Grand Marshall of Volga Day 2024. Such a fitting bestowal for a dearly beloved, selfless, and optimistic fellow….Willis Chase. Willis has devoted the last fifty years as an active member of the Volga Fire Department, with 24 of those years as fire chief. He was heavily involved in establishing the 911 system as well as the radio system in Clayton County. Willis expresses his heartfelt belief in the 911 system, “if one life is saved, [the system] pays for itself.” Willis has lived in and around Volga his entire life, except for two years serving in the Army, followed by working in Tripoli, Iowa, as an auto mechanic for a Chevy dealership. Born to Lester and Dorothy Chase, Willis grew up with his two siblings, Charles (Janice Meader) and Helen (married Mick Eder), on what was known as the Ewing place, located on the Wadena highway coming from Volga. After living there for 12 years, the family moved to Volga. With his favorite childhood memory as “swimming in the Volga River, Willis recalls with a chuckle, “when the farmers needed help, they knew where to find us……in the river…and back to the river we would go after returning to town!” Other ways of Willis’ service to the Volga community included involvement in the American Legion as well as years spent cutting wood for those who needed it to heat their homes. After attending Volga and Central Community Schools, Willis studied auto mechanics at the Universal Trade School in Omaha, Nebraska. It was then that Willis entered the Army at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri and did a tour as a cook at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and Fort Benning, Georgia. On June 1, 1974, Willis married Schelvie Meader, also a Volga native, at the United Methodist Church in Volga. “Actually, the pastor who married us, celebrated with us at our 50th anniversary church service,” Willis fondly shares. Parallel to serving four years in the Army Reserves, Willis began a twelve-year tenure as an auto mechanic at Walch’s Ford Dealership in Elkader. The last 24 years of his professional career as a mechanic was served with the Clayton County Roads Department. Willis feels that the greatest achievement of the Volga Community Fire Department has been the building of the current fire station in 1991. “It’s simply incredible that the cost was solely $36,000,” Willis retails in amazement, “This was made possible by the Sacred Heart Catholic Church donating the land and by all the labor being volunteered.” He also takes pride in the camaraderie between generations and how there’s role modeling that encourages younger firefighters to actively participate. Anyone would attribute this camaraderie, team spirit, and care for one another to Willis Chase’s character and leadership. This was exemplified by placing a high priority on debriefing after each service call. “Debriefing not only helps sift through the emotional effects of a call,” Willis explains, “but it also helps in learning what to do, and what not to do, on future [emergency service] calls.” As Willis has passed on the leadership reigns, so does he pass on his optimism for the future of Volga. Although he cites enticing people to move to town as a challenge of keeping Volga vibrant, Willis sees the future of the town, particularly of the fire department as “nothing, but up.” From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you, Willis Chase, for not only your half century of service to the Volga community, but also for instilling vibrancy, camaraderie, and security among its citizens.