Gloversville has its own hero.

During Tuesday’s common council meeting, Paul Gillis was awarded a proclamation for his role in saving a family when their home caught fire during the early hours of July 5.

At 2:31 a.m., as Gillis was preparing for work, he noticed the home across the street aflame.

“Without hesitation, Mr. Gillis took immediate action, alerting his wife, Jennifer, to call 911, while he ran across the street from the residence. And whereas, thanks to his swift and courageous response, Mr. Gillis was able to wait and safely evacuate all seven occupants of the home, three adults and four children in the nick of time before the fire spread further,” Mayor Vince DeSantis said while reading the proclamation.

Gillis’ wife, Jennifer, took the affected family into their home, sheltering them while they waited for emergency services.

The Gloversville Fire Department, with assistance from the Johnstown Fire Department and Lake Valley EMS then arrived to extinguish the blaze.

“By his quick-thinking bravery and selfless acts, Mr. Gillis certainly saved the lives of all seven [people] in the affected home,” DeSantis read from the proclamation.

DeSantis and Gloversville Fire Chief Tom Groff awarded the proclamation to Gillis

Groff said footage from Gillis’ Ring camera shows him sprinting across the street to wake the family, while instructing his wife to call 911.

“Mr. Gillis had told me — he didn’t really elaborate too much — he just said [he] went over and got [the family] out of the house,” Groff said. “He sent me this video, and it showed this huge glow across the street, like there’s a fire over there. I just heard him react instantly, just selflessly run right out the door — not even like looking and going.”

Groff said after watching the video, he worked with DeSantis to acknowledge Gillis’ bravery.

Residents “should be recognized when they do things and help ordinary people.”

Gillis expressed humility during the ceremony, and received a standing ovation from attendees at the common council meeting.

“Everybody worked together, everybody was a hero,” he said.

Groff said that it’s important to recognize positive actions in the community when most things people hear are negative.

“There’s so much negativity these days about things, and when people do things to help their neighbors,” he said. “It should be recognized, because that should be stressed as the good that’s out there, the kind of people who do good things, rather than... so much negativity,” he said. “It’s nice to see the other people step up and answer the call when it’s needed.”

This summer is the 100th Anniversary of the Kane Mountain Fire Tower and there will be several centennial events in the Town of Caroga this weekend. The public is invited to participate the events. The celebration will honor the tower as well as the observers and rangers who worked at the tower from 1925 until 1988 when the state turned to aerial surveillance to protect our forests. The celebration will also acknowledge the importance of the Fire Tower and trails to tourism and recreation in the Southern Adirondacks.

The centennial celebration for the Kane Mountain Fire Tower is being sponsored by the New York Chapter of the Forest Fire Lookout Association (FFLA), the Caroga Historical Museum and Association (CHM), the Town of Caroga, the Canada Lakes Conservation Association, Fulton County Tourism, the New York State Department........

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