By Donna M. Perry,Staff Writer

JAY - Lyle LaPlante has been hanging out at the Jay fire stations for more than 30 years. On Tuesday, he was washing windows at the North Jay Fire Station.

He says he's at the fire station so much that his wife, Doris, has joked that he should have his bed up in the meeting room at the North Jay station.

Such dedication hasn't gone unnoticed by his peers.

LaPlante, 70, was elected Firefighter of the Year recently by his fellow firefighters.

Though LaPlante doesn't fight fires anymore, he does drive the firetrucks, help keep the town's two fire stations clean and provide traffic control during emergency situations.

"I do what they need me to do," he said Tuesday as he washed the windows of a bay door.

He responds to most of the fires and to all the accidents.

"I go to everything, if I'm well," he said. Last year, he had a heart attack so he, as well as other firefighters, make sure he doesn't overdo it.

The retired Jay Highway Department worker said he became a firefighter because he wanted to belong to an organization, and he wanted to help people.

"I just like people, and I like helping people," he said.

He was surprised to receive the recognition from his peers.

"There are a lot of firefighters - we have 40-some-odd firefighters, and they're all good people," he said.

LaPlante said he comes to the station every two or three days to check on things.

"I'm in and out of here all the time," he said. "All the guys do stuff around here. ...We try to keep the trucks clean and take care of them. Trucks cost a lot of money."

As LaPlante continued to wash the windows near the shined-up firetrucks, he said, "It's very good here. They're a nice bunch of guys."

He and other members of the department are pictured in front of two shiny firetrucks on the home page of their Web page, www.jayfd.org.