Lewisville Promotes From Within Naming Mark McNeal New Fire Chief
LEWISVILLE, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - Lewisville Assistant Fire Chief Mark McNeal has been selected as the new Fire Chief for the Lewisville Fire Department, the city formally announced in a news release Thursday.
McNeal succeeds Chief Tim Tittle who died of cancer in January.
"I am grateful to Chief Tittle for seeing something in me and giving me the opportunity to develop," McNeal said. "I am humbled to be given this opportunity and look forward to serving the men and women of the Lewisville Fire Department and the people of our community."
McNeal has more than 28 years of firefighting experience, the city of Lewisville said.
He began his career with the Lewisville Fire Department in 1992 as a firefighter/EMT.
He earned his Paramedic Certification in December 1995, was promoted to Driver/Engineer in September 1997, promoted to Captain in July 2000, promoted to Division Chief of Training in March 2013, and appointed Assistant Chief of Operations in June 2014.
"Mark McNeal is a dedicated public servant that led our department through the heartbreaking loss of our Chief and now the challenge of COVID-19," said City Manager Donna Barron. "He has proven to me that he is a true servant leader dedicated to the Lewisville Fire Department and the Lewisville community."
McNeal has a bachelor's degree in Fire Administration and is a Texas Commission on Fire Protection Master Firefighter and Fire Officer IV. Lewisville was his first department job, but he also worked as a volunteer firefighter in his hometown of Sanger for a few years after hiring on with Lewisville.
"The Lewisville Fire Department has evolved over the years to meet the needs of the communities we serve," McNeal said. "I am especially thankful to the men and women of the Lewisville Fire Department for the support and encouragement they have given me and want them to know that I am here to serve them and look forward to what this department will accomplish in the future."
McNeal and his wife Kim have been married for 30 years. They have five children and one grandchild.
McNeal officially assumed the position of Fire Chief on March 25.