City of Mississauga selects Deryn Rizzi as new Fire Chief
Published January 19, 2021 at 7:12 pm
The City of Mississauga has selected a new permanent fire chief.
On Jan. 19, the city announced that Deryn Rizzi will be Mississauga’s new fire chief and director of emergency management, effective Feb. 2, 2021.
She will succeed former Fire Chief Tim Beckett, who announced his retirement in late 2020.
Nancy Macdonald-Duncan has been acting as interim fire chief since Beckett’s departure and will remain in her current role until next month.
“I am excited to have Deryn at the City of Mississauga and my thanks to Nancy Macdonald-Duncan for her leadership as Acting Chief during the transition period. Deryn brings a wide range of experience at the federal, provincial and municipal level in leading day-to-day operations and also in strategic support for all areas of the fire service,” said Shari Lichterman, Commissioner, Community Services, in a statement.
“Beyond her work in fire halls, Chief Rizzi is a trusted, respected and sought-after thought leader, committed to mentoring and educating about proven and emerging best practices on emergency preparedness and response. We are proud to welcome her as Mississauga’s first permanent female Fire Chief.”
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The city says Rizzi has 20 years’ experience in the fire service, beginning her career in the City of Vaughan as a firefighter and eventually becoming the city’s Deputy Fire Chief and Fire Chief.
While in Vaughan, she received an Institute of Public Administration Canada (IPAC) Innovative Management Award and the Diversity and Inclusion Award from the Fire Service Women of Ontario. Rizzi was also a Portraits of Giving recipient.
Her career highlights include working in the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre in the Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management, where she provided guidance on operations, education and training related to emergencies.
Rizzi has a Bachelor of Education degree and Bachelor of Arts degree from Queen’s University and graduated from York University with both a Masters of Arts, Disaster and Emergency Management and a Disaster and Emergency Management Certificate.
Rizzi has also completed a diploma in Public Administration from Western University and holds a Masters Certificate in Municipal Leadership from the Schulich School of Business. She is also a graduate of the Ontario Fire College and has taught at Humber College, George Brown College, York University and the Ontario Fire College.
Rizzi has given a number of talks, including “Using Social Media to Inspire Fire Service Women to Lead and Encourage Empowerment” at the International Association of Fire Chiefs Leadership Symposium and “Understanding and Supporting our LGBTQ+ Community” at the Fire Rescue International Conference.
Rizzi served as the Vice President of the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs, chaired the Human Relations Committee for the International Association of Fire Chiefs and is a member of the Hospice Vaughan Board of Directors.
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