When Robert Roland and his wife Carol moved to Anderson Valley in January 2008, he wanted to support his new community and volunteer with their fire department. It was a full circle journey for the man who actually started as a volunteer firefighter at Riverside County Fire Department when he was a teenager. He served in the United States Marine Corps and was a fighter pilot from 1968 to 1978. He worked in the aerospace industry until his retirement in 2007. While battling one of more than 100 wildfires in Mendocino County, he suffered respiratory difficulties and passed away the following day.