Steve Dubay’s journey is one of a distinguished firefighter, community leader and lifelong student. A UCCS alum with numerous other degrees, Steve is quick to say he’s “just some guy who got up, went to work, and loved every minute of it.”
But as a now-retired Deputy Chief of the Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD), his career of more than three decades is much more than that. In fact, CSFD recently received a $4,500 donation in Steve’s honor, all for equipment to help rescue pets at the scene of a fire. The “SED” kits, named using Steve’s initials, were funded by the Fire Foundation of Colorado Springs and the Westside Animal Hospital and include pet-friendly oxygen kits to be kept on each engine.
“My wife, Marta, and I are dog lovers,” Steve explained. “For the past eight years, we’ve been taking in elderly, disabled dogs that need more care than the average dog, so we can provide them quality of life and good end-of-life care.”
He said the kits were a surprise, as he asked for very little fanfare in his final days with CSFD.
“There were all kinds of pictures of me with Dr. Dye and staff members from Westside Animal Hospital, the Fire Foundation, and the mayor,” he said. “It was pretty cool. I was shocked. I didn’t expect it.”
Steve’s path to firefighting began in his childhood. His father was a volunteer firefighter in Michigan, sparking Steve’s interest in the fire service. By the time he was in the fourth grade, Steve was already spending weekends at the fire station with his dad. His mother was also involved with the local fire station, taking coffee to the first responders at the scene of emergencies.
Steve remembers a day during his high school years in Wyoming when he watched his father fight a fire in a burning mobile home. It was his first up-close experience of his dad in action.
“My dad asked me to help him get his firefighting gear and he went up to the front door and got on his hands and knees and crawled in,” he explained. “I was like, ‘Holy buckets! Is this what he does?’”
Steve said that moment solidified his desire to follow in his father’s footsteps.
“Neither of my parents went to college so I didn’t grow up in a home where college was talked about that much,” Steve said, explaining his choice to earn an associate’s degree while playing basketball for a few years after high school. “The reason for going to college wasn’t to get a degree as much as it was to keep my athletic career goals and then I was going to be a firefighter.”
He began his professional career in 1985 in Casper, Wyoming and later moved to a new role at the Colorado Springs Fire Department. While working full time, he finished long-distance a Bachelor of Science degree in Fire Service Administration from Western Oregon State College, now Western Oregon University.
A few years later, Steve decided to attend what was then the UCCS Graduate School of Public Affairs for a Master of Public Administration degree.
“I wasn’t anywhere near an upper-level leadership position at the CSFD when I graduated from UCCS,” he said. “I knew that at some point in my career I wanted to be promoted and the UCCS program opened doors in my life that wouldn’t necessarily have been open. UCCS planted that seed and prepared that foundation of lifelong learning for me, and it never really stopped.”
All the while, Steve was moving through the ranks from firefighter to firefighter-paramedic, lieutenant, captain, and battalion chief.
In 2011, Steve became a Deputy Chief in the Colorado Springs Fire Department. His leadership during critical incidents, including the Waldo Canyon Fire, showcased his ability to manage complex emergencies and protect the community effectively.
“I have used my degree from UCCS in so many different experiences, not just in my municipal career with the City of Colorado Springs but while serving on boards and in interactions with other people. It just gives you such a different perspective,” he said.
He mentioned two professors who played a particular role in his success: former UCCS professor Richard Box and the late Mark McConkie.
“Dr. Box is responsible for convincing me to apply to UCCS and Dr. McConkie was my favorite instructor in the program,” Steve said.
Steve now serves on the UCCS College of Public Service Dean’s Advisory Board.
“I want to see that the college continues to grow and to have good professors and good instructors and good curriculum,” he said. “I want to advocate for the college both in the community and with the students now that I’m at the point in my life where I can give back.”
In addition to his earlier degrees and time spent serving the UCCS community, Steve has a Master of Arts in National Security Studies from the Naval Postgraduate School and is a board member of the United States Fire Administration’s National Fire Academy Board of Visitors.
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