Karpinski named interim chief as Rice retires

Ozaukee Central Assistant Fire Chief Matthew Karpinski was named the department’s interim chief last week by the Grafton Police and Fire Commission.

Karpinski, who has been with the Grafton Fire Department since 2015, succeeds Chief Bill Rice, who retired on Friday, March 13.

“The commission has full faith and confidence that Chief Karpinski will continue to lead the department forward while the commission begins the process of searching and appointing a permanent fire chief,” Commission Chairman Paul Moroder said in a statement issued Friday.

“The commission also extends its appreciation to retiring Chief Rice for his cooperation with the commission over the years and his dedicated service to the communities of central Ozaukee County.”

The commission voted unanimously to appoint Karpinski following a closed session on Thursday, March 12, Moroder said.

The action came a day after the Grafton Town Board approved a memorandum of understanding giving the commission the authority to make the appointment. It was the last of the four municipalities involved in the Ozaukee Central Fire Department to approve the document.

Karpinski has been in the fire service since 2001.

He started his career with the Germantown Fire Department, where he worked as an emergency medical technician while he was studying criminal justice.

“I was quickly drawn to the fire service,” Karpinski said in an interview, noting a supervisor told him he was going to attend fire school.

“He knew the right path and knew my interest in the department,” Karpinski added.

He was initially drawn to the fire service by a desire to help people, Karpinski said, adding he enjoys being involved in the community and participating in things.

“Recognizing the value in that, I decided to keep going down that path,” he said.

He also enjoys what he referred to as the technical side of the department.

“There’s critical thinking involved that I enjoy,” Karpinski said. “I enjoy coming up with solutions to problems that many other people would struggle to find.”

Karpinski advanced through the ranks, achieving the rank of captain in Germantown before he joined the Grafton Fire Department in 2015.

He was hired as the department’s division chief, a role that was reclassified as the assistant chief in the early 2020s, and was the second full-time member of the department. Rice was the first.

In the job, Karpinski was heavily involved with fire prevention efforts as well as overall department operations.

As interim chief, he said, his plan is simple.

“I look forward to keeping the department moving forward during this time of transition,” he said. “You don’t want to make any changes now because you don’t know the final destination.”

But, he said, the department is about to launch one new program that’s been in the works for some time —a program starting April 14 that will have the department’s ambulances carrying blood to be administered to patients en route to the hospital.

The Central Ozaukee Department will be one of only about seven in the state with the program and the only agency in Ozaukee County.

“It’s very new,” Karpinski said. “There’s quite a process affiliated with it. It’s very exciting.”

Karpinski said he plans to apply to become the department’s full-time chief once the Police and Fire Commission determines the process, noting he’s dedicated to the community he and his wife have lived in for the last decade.

“It’s a great area,” he said. “The area we cover has a lot to offer.”