The Last Coffee Break at Station 20

See full photo gallery from the event at the end of the article.

NEWBERG, Ore. — For more than a century, the rhythm of firefighting in Newberg has included two constants: answering calls and drinking coffee.

The coffee came at 10 a.m. and again at 3 p.m., marked so faithfully that someone once notched the station wall clock to remember the hours. It was about both caffeine and ritual. One former firefighter remembers it as “firehouse coffee,” which “poured like mud.”

“If you had a cup of that, you weren’t sleeping the rest of the night,” said retired volunteer firefighter Bob Harding.

But beyond the coffee cups, it was a time for firefighters to connect. They talked about the day, discussed the news, and traded light-hearted jabs — often revisiting the time someone made a mistake.

It became such a part of their social fabric that many retired firefighters continued the tradition weekly after hanging up their turnout gear.

On Wednesday, Feb. 18, that tradition returned home one last time.

A group of retired and current firefighters gathered around a large table inside Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue’s Station 20 on Second Street, sharing stories and gentle ribbing over cups of strong coffee. It marked their final coffee break at the station before the building is scheduled for demolition and rebuilding as part of a long-planned modernization.

“In TVF&R, Newberg is the longest-standing city fire department in our history,” said TVF&R Deputy Chief Alex Haven. “I couldn’t think of a better way to honor it than to have you all here for coffee.”

Haven started as a volunteer with the Newberg Fire Department in 2000 and long called Station 20 home. He said the connection between generations is unique and helps recruit and retain younger firefighters who may feel intimidated or overwhelmed.

“I think this is a great testament to how much history there is in the Newberg Fire Department,” he said. “I can’t think of another fire department where there is this much engagement over multiple generations.”

Tim Craig, a former Newberg firefighter now serving as deputy chief of the Sisters Fire Department, traveled from Sisters that morning to enjoy one last cup of coffee at Station 20.

“This was my house for a long part of my career,” Craig said. “This place — these people — mean so much to me, and I know it’s the same for everyone else who has ever stepped in here.”

The weekly coffee break dates back decades, to when Newberg still operated its own city fire department. Firefighters gathered in a small upstairs office in the old Newberg Fire Station, now the City Hall building, long before Station 20 became their permanent home.

“It was just our coffee break,” said retired firefighter Ben Erb. “It wasn’t something we did intentionally. We just needed coffee, and conversations happened.”

After retiring, many continued visiting the station once a week to catch up. When the COVID-19 pandemic closed the station to nonessential personnel, the group adapted and started meeting outdoors at a member’s house and later in his shop, warmed by heaters and an overworked residential coffee pot.

“If someone needed something, someone in this group would help figure it out,” said retired volunteer firefighter Brian Love.

He joked about some of the firefighters’ ages, tossing one of the trademark light-hearted jabs that remain central to the coffee breaks.

“Some of these guys are too old, and they can’t contribute anymore,” he said, followed by a chorus of jeers, “but there’s still respect involved. That’s what it’s about. And it all started sitting around a table drinking coffee together.”

Station 20 itself carries its own history. The building was constructed in 1940 as a public works facility before becoming home to the Newberg Fire Department in 1969. It was remodeled in 2012 and today serves a 32.5-square-mile response area covering west Newberg, parts of rural Yamhill County, and the Chehalem Mountains.

Now, the aging station will be replaced with a modern facility designed to meet the needs of today’s firefighters and the growing community they serve. The new building will allow fire engines to pull through the station rather than back in to improve safety and efficiency.

Read: Newberg’s TVF&R Fire Station 20 Rebuild to Get New Look, Functionality

During construction, firefighters will operate from a temporary site built on the vacant lot across Blaine Street from the current station, while continuing operations from Station 21 on Springbrook Road.

Inside Station 20 on Feb. 18, the conversations drifted easily across decades. Firefighters recalled the addition of new engines, championship wins in firefighter waterball competitions, and debated who owned the Dalmatian that graced the cover of the department’s centennial commemorative magazine (she was Bob Harding’s).

They spoke about colleagues who moved away, those who rose into leadership roles across the region, and those no longer there to join them.

Each story drew laughter, nods, and knowing smiles, punctuated by light-hearted jabs that kept the mood from becoming too serious.

“You hate to interrupt,” Love said. “Because you don’t know what memory you might cut off by doing it.”