A United States Marine Corps veteran, a captain at Waterbury Fire Department, and chief at Newtown Hook & Ladder — Ray Corbo is this year’s winner of the Mary Hawley Public Service Award.

Corbo joined Hook & Ladder when he was 16 years old. His first call was a fire, something not a lot of firefighters can say. He considered himself “lucky” to be able to have that experience.

Not only has Corbo been a member of Hook & Ladder since 1988, he has also served as chief three separate times.

“I took this position, I want to say it was ‘04, and the week after I got appointed, my wife says, ‘I’m pregnant.’ And I went, ‘Oh,’ cause I knew the commitment,” Corbo said. He served as chief for a little while, then stepped down to take care of his young son, Joe, who is also now a member at Hook & Ladder.

David Ober, who also served as fire marshal for 24 years, was the chief before Corbo. Ober served as chief again when Corbo stepped down. Corbo was chief from 2004-2007, 2013-2017, and has served as chief since 2023.

“My son is 20, and he’s a very active member now,” Corbo explained. “I’m not going anywhere for a little while.”

Corbo’s favorite part of being part of Hook & Ladder is “serving the community.” He said it is “very rewarding” to be able to help his community.

“You see some people in pretty bad events in their life and it’s nice to be able to at least try to help,” Corbo explained.

Corbo’s willingness to help does not stop at Hook & Ladder’s firehouse, either. As mentioned, Corbo served in the Marine Corps for almost four years. He left early, as his father suffered a fatal heart attack while driving the bus he owned and operated. Corbo stepped in to help the family business — driving the school bus.

Corbo’s father was an auxiliary police officer, and, for a while, Corbo wanted to be a police officer. Corbo’s father also owned the cider mill in town and hired a Hook & Ladder member. This sparked Corbo’s interest in firefighting, and it was solidified when his family moved across town and the person who had been living there was also a firefighter.

“The guy who was moving … he was also a [firefighter]. He rented the place, so fire gear was in the house when we went to look at it, and that was kind of the time I got the bug. I remember trying on the boots,” Corbo said.

The Award

On Monday, July 6, the members of the Mary Hawley Public Service Award Committee snuck into Hook & Ladder’s firehouse to surprise Corbo during a meeting. Corbo, at first, was annoyed and frustrated that his meeting was being interrupted.

Committee member Bronson Hawley, a distant relative of Mary Hawley, explained a little bit about the award to The Newtown Bee. Hawley was chairman of the Hawley Society’s 100th anniversary. To celebrate, Hawley wanted to do something special for the milestone anniversary.

“What I want[ed] to do with the 100th anniversary in … 2023 was make it a tribute to Mary, and how could I do that? And so we came up with the Mary Hawley Public Service Award for two reasons. Number one: Get Mary’s name out in front of the public every year to remind Newtown of this incredible woman and what she did. And number two: To recognize volunteerism, which is so important to every community. It was really a win-win-win,” Hawley said.

Hawley also gave credit to Ken Weinstein, who he said actually suggested the idea to him. The award has recognized Gordon Williams and Lee Paulsen so far.

Mary Hawley was Newtown’s benefactress who generously donated to Newtown throughout her life. Her donations helped build C.H. Booth Library, Edmond Town Hall, and Hawley School. One of her stipulations was that she named everything after other people, and never herself.

Corbo said that through his wife, Elaine, who is president of the C.H. Booth Library Board of Trustees, he has learned a lot about Mary Hawley.

“I’ve learned a lot about Mary Hawley, you know, the ins and outs … more personal stuff that a lot of people don’t know … It was so interesting to learn about [her],” Corbo said.

When asked how it felt to share an award with Mary’s name, Corbo said it feels “good.”

“It’s really cool,” Corbo said. He added, “By no means am I … at the same level or will ever be because you just can’t. She was very generous.”

The award is meant to celebrate the “unsung heroes” of Newtown, as Hawley explained.

“That’s what this award wants to do, is recognize these people who donate their time, their effort, and their compassion to helping their fellow citizens of Newtown. We couldn’t be happier,” Hawley said.

The Nominations

Corbo was not just nominated once for this award. He was nominated in 2025 and again this year. Several of his fellow Hook & Ladder firefighters and neighbors nominated Corbo.

One nomination read, “What sets Ray apart is the combination of longevity, consistency, and genuine care. Many people serve for a season; Ray has shown up for over 24 years with the same high level of dedication — whether as a patrol officer handling calls or now as chief guiding the department's overall community-oriented approach.”

Another read, “As a firefighter at the Newtown Hook & Ladder Company for over 38 years, he has had the opportunity to help residents and passers-by in our town. An opportunity he has never once turned away from.”

While Hawley was aware of Corbo’s dedication to Hook & Ladder, he did not realize that he also served as a captain in Waterbury.

“That’s unbelievable. That’s really unbelievable,” Hawley said. “That is really remarkable.”

Maureen Crick Owen, a fellow committee member for the Mary Hawley Public Service Award Committee, said, “With so many wonderful volunteers in Newtown, narrowing down the nominations received is never easy. Ray Corbo stood out as someone who beautifully embodies everything the Mary Hawley Public Service Award represents.”

When Corbo was surprised at his meeting, despite his initial annoyance, he quickly softened when he realized he had been nominated for this award. Sherri Smith Baggett was the committee member to actually announce Corbo's nomination.

"It was a pleasure to be a part of ... announcing to Ray Corbo he was chosen to be the recipient of this year's Mary Hawley Public Service Award," Smith Baggett said. "Ray's volunteer services over decades ... makes him a natural choice for this award."

After the initial shock wore off, Corbo expressed extreme gratitude for the people who have lifted him up.

He said that he has never done volunteer firefighting for the “recognition,” he just likes to help.

“I was very surprised. You know, I wasn’t very happy at first. I’m truly grateful,” Corbo said. “It’s heartwarming … Nobody here, we don’t do it to be recognized, but it’s nice to be recognized because it’s a lot of hard work. Everybody here does it.”

Corbo said he would have been “perfectly happy” sitting in the back of the truck with his son, but noted that it is “more fun” wearing the black helmet than the white helmet.

“I’m grateful for the recognition but certainly am not doing it for that. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have been here for 38 years to come to this,” Corbo said.

Corbo and Hawley both said that they hope the award inspires younger generations to volunteer — either with a fire company or in other areas.

“You don’t have to be in the later stages of life to volunteer … The earlier you start, the longer you could do it,” Corbo said. “Volunteerism is very important, not just, you know, fighting fires … You don’t have to be running into burning buildings to volunteer. There’s a lot you can do.”

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Reporter Sam Cross can be reached at sam@thebee.com.