TWO ROCK VOLUNTEER
FIRE DEPTARTMENT

Two Rock Fire Chief Lori Anello began her career in the fire service at the age of 4 when she responded to her first fire, strapped in the passenger seat of a fire engine with her dad, veteran firefighter Tony Anello, at the wheel. Some things have changed since then, but one thing remains the same – you will be hard-pressed to beat an Anello to a working fire.

Lori grew up in Guerneville, CA riding her horse in the Armstrong Woods from sunup to sundown and dreaming of becoming a firefighter or a barrel racer. Naturally, since barrel racing was so dangerous, her parents helped to point her down the safer career path of fighting fires.

As a young wannabe firefighter, Lori remembers running to the window when her dad’s pager went off to watch her parents work as a team to expedite her dad’s response time. While her dad put on his fire gear, her mom would run out to start the truck, then quickly slide out the passenger door as her dad jumped in the driver side.

At times her mom would barely get out before her dad sped away. At age 10 Lori worked at her grandparents’ fish market until her high school graduation. At 15 she became a fire dispatcher and, at age 16, she joined the Guerneville Fire Department with her father.

During high school she would not participate in any ‘out of the area functions’ or leave town for fear that she would miss a fire call. There are also many stories of her dad leaving her behind when a call came in because she just wasn’t quick enough. Lori soon developed quicker response tactics, for she hated to walk that long mile just to watch over an empty station. She also developed a fierce passion for her work, and took night courses in fire science at Santa Rosa Junior College.

Lori worked 11 years in the nursing field, mostly on the surgical and emergency floor. While a nurse, she continued her passion for firefighting by volunteering at Bodega Bay Fire and Bodega Fire where she was Captain. In 2001 she was given the opportunity once again to join her dad in the fire service when she was hired on as a fulltime paid Firefighter/Engineer with the Coast Guard Fire Department. Lori and her dad were the first father/daughter team in a paid fire department in Sonoma County as well as the Federal system. They worked together for 4 years.

In 2006 Lori became Two Rock Volunteer Fire Department’s sixth Fire Chief since 1927. Under her direction, the department has undergone a major transformation. Since the Chief’s appointment, the total collective years of fire service experience has grown from 20 years to over 100. The total number of volunteers has risen sharply from 5 to 13.

Under the Chief’s leadership, the Two Rock Firefighters have quickly developed a kinship, a close family-like structure that focuses on the safety of all – with a determined enthusiasm and professionalism to serve the community well. The Chief’s goal is to build a new fire station. as well as to build the best volunteer fire department in Sonoma County. Chief Lori Anello lives in Two Rock with her husband Lou and their 10-year-old daughter Ashley.