For the Times

WAUSAU – Robert Barteck has been appointed as the fire chief for the Wausau Fire Department.

Barteck was appointed interim fire chief on April 2, after the retirement of Chief Tracey Kujawa. He joined the Wausau Fire Department in 2019 as a deputy chief.

“We are thankful for a great internal candidate who is well-positioned to continue leading a best in class fire department for the City of Wausau,” said Police and Fire Commissioner Kathy Strasser.

Barteck grew up in Owen and credits his father Noel’s selfless service as a volunteer firefighter/EMT-basic on the Owen-Withee-Curtiss Fire Department for inspiring him to pursue a career serving others.

Barteck graduated from Fox Valley Technical College in 1993 with an A.S. in Fire Protection Technician. While studying there he interned for one school year at the Oshkosh Fire Department, a role he acknowledges as pivotal for his career path.

After graduating, he was hired by the Wisconsin Rapids Fire Department and served that community from 1993 to 2019. While serving as deputy chief in Wisconsin Rapids, Wausau Fire Chief Tracey Kujawa selected Barteck to serve as Wausau’s Deputy Chief in 2019.

“The Wausau Fire Department is an outstanding organization filled with extraordinary servants. I am proud to rank among them, and I am honored and humbled to be chosen to serve them from the position of Fire Chief,” Barteck said after learning of his selection. “I could not be more excited to spend the remainder of my fire service career here. I love working here and serving the people of this community. I am ready to continue the strong work towards organizational excellence with a utopic type atmosphere that Chief Tracey Kujawa started.”

“Chief Barteck is a visionary leader who will continue guiding the Wausau Fire Department with excellence, strategic foresight, and top of class training,” she said. “The Chief has also been instrumental in crafting partnerships with Marathon County that benefit our shared constituents and I look forward to future collaborations,” Wausau Mayor Katie Rosenberg stated.