Swearing-In Ceremony Set For New Hamden Fire Chief

Press release from Town of Hamden:

HAMDEN, CT — The swearing-in ceremony of Fire Chief Shelly L. Carter will take place at 11AM this Friday, July 18, 2025 at Memorial Town Hall, 2372 Whitney Avenue, Hamden, CT 06518.

Mayor Garrett initially appointed Fire Chief Carter to the position of Acting Assistant Fire Chief effective January 26, 2024, and the Legislative Council approved this appointment on February 20, 2024. Following Fire Chief Jeffrey Naples’ retirement, Mayor Garrett appointed Fire Chief Carter to the position of Acting Fire Chief effective March 28, 2025 and the Legislative Council approved this appointment on June 2, 2025.

Fire Chief Carter joined the Hamden Fire Department in January 2024 after serving the Hartford Fire Department for over 20 years as Firefighter, Lieutenant, Certified Fire Marshal, Captain, Executive Officer, Public Information Officer, and Acting Deputy Chief. Following Fire Chief Carter’s retirement from the Hartford Fire Department, she became the Operations and Training Manager for CT’s DESPP within DEMHS. In December 2022, she served as the Institutional Fire Chief for CT’s DDS’ Southbury Training School, becoming first Black female Fire Chief of a Department in all the New England States.

Fire Chief Carter has a proven track record creating opportunities and developing future leaders in the fire service and encompassing and embracing diversity and inclusion in emergency services intentionally and strategically. She has a wealth of experience designing and implementing comprehensive fire safety programs and classroom and training exercises, with a demonstrable track record of improved performance of the firefighters and officers in her command and an unwavering commitment to safety.

Please join us at 11AM this Friday, July 18, 2025 at Memorial Town Hall for this historic swearing-in.

For further information, please contact Deputy Chief of Staff, Alexa M. Panayotakis, at (203) 287-7100 or by email at apanayotakis@hamden.com.

This press release was produced by Town of Hamden. The views expressed here are the author’s own.