September 2024
This month, Carmel Monthly is pleased to feature Carmel Fire Chief Joel Thacker, one of Indiana’s foremost public safety leaders, on its cover. The former Indiana Homeland Security leader assumed his new role on September 3, 2024, and was officially sworn in on Monday, September 9, at Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre.
Thacker brings over 30 years of experience in fire service and emergency management. His appointment marks a significant milestone for Carmel’s public safety efforts as he steps into the leadership role with a wealth of expertise from his previous positions, including his role as executive director of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.
Throughout his leadership roles, he has overseen firefighting and emergency medical services training, fire investigations, cybersecurity preparedness, emergency management response and recovery.
“Joel has been repeatedly called upon at both local and state levels for his leadership and knowledge in public safety,” said Carmel Mayor Sue Finkam. “I am thrilled to have his expertise focused on our community, leading an impressive team that is committed to the safety of our residents, businesses and visitors.”
A Public Safety Veteran With Deep Roots in Indiana
Thacker’s career began humbly as a volunteer firefighter and EMT in Johnson County. Over the decades, he rose through the ranks, eventually becoming fire chief of the Plainfield Fire Territory before being appointed as Indiana’s state fire marshal by Gov. Eric J. Holcomb in 2022. His vast experience includes managing firefighting operations, EMS training, fire investigations, cybersecurity preparedness and coordinating emergency response and recovery efforts across the state.
“I have loved helping people since the age of 16 and [my passion for public safety] grew from there,” Thacker shared. “After I graduated high school, I worked for a private ambulance service in Greenwood, continued to get training and development, and I moved to a position with Wishard Hospital as an EMT on an ambulance in Indianapolis and became a paramedic. I’m still a licensed paramedic, though I don’t utilize those skills anywhere near like our men and women who are on the front lines every day. But those skills and experiences help me keep perspective as fire chief.”
Educational Background and Professional Accolades
In addition to his hands-on experience in public safety, Thacker is a licensed paramedic and holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Indiana Wesleyan University. He also earned a master’s degree in criminal justice and public safety from Indiana University, adding to his comprehensive understanding of emergency management and fire safety.
“I feel like my last four and a half years at the state, the experience and education in that role, has prepared me to work really well with CPD and local law enforcement from an all-hazards standpoint,” Thacker stated. “I’ve been talking with Chief Sterling [CPD] and with David Woodward [CCS Director of Student Services]. I know that the Carmel Fire and Police Departments have trained for events, but we have to continue to train, communicate and prepare for those [events].”
Building Upon a Foundation of Excellence
“I think the men and women of the Carmel Fire Department operate at a very high level right now, and we will continue to build on that by developing people in the organization,” Thacker said. “Every day, the fire chief has to be better than I was yesterday, and I look at how I can be better tomorrow than I am today… it starts with the fire chief all the way down to our newest firefighter. If we are getting better every day, the organization is getting better. When that happens, we can better serve the community. It seems simple, but there are a lot of moving parts within the fire department.”
Thacker added, “We have to be prepared on all fronts because the community loves attending concerts, parades and all of the [community] events. We have a job to help those attending to feel safe, along with law enforcement. That requires a constant state of preparation.”
The chief acknowledged the importance of improving communication with non-English speaking residents and visitors in Carmel, noting that over 100 languages are spoken within the Carmel Clay Schools.
“At my very first meeting with the executive team, we spoke about the demographics and cultures of Carmel and Hamilton County,” Thacker said. “At my swearing-in ceremony, there were many cultures represented there, and it was wonderful to see that. It is certainly something that we need to look at to ensure that our messaging that goes out is available in all those different languages, but also, we need to make sure that we understand those cultures so that when we respond to an incident, we understand their expectations, culturally, and that our responders are aware of a potential cultural barrier, and that this is why the individual(s) are responding back to us in a certain way. In communities such as Carmel, it can be a challenge because there are so many different cultures, but that’s also what makes our community wonderful at the same time. We are also identifying leaders within the various cultural groups in our community so they can help share the messages as well.”
Thacker concluded, “Part of Mayor Finkam’s vision for Carmel is maintaining its world-class public safety, and that’s what really drew me to this position. I’ve been working with our administrative team to understand what the highest priorities are in their divisions that we need to be working on as well. Every day, there are new complexities within the city as far as building, construction and technology… and those are wonderful when they’re working right, but when something’s not, we are called in to take care of that problem. So, making sure that the department is well-trained to handle those situations is really the focus, and CFD does a great job at all of these things already, but we will continue to look at how we can improve.”
