Fire Chief Mindy Andrasevits’ new job will be a culmination of everything she’s done in the fire service thus far.

Andrasevits shared Monday that she will be stepping down as chief as she prepares for a new role with the National Fire Protection Association. Her last day will be Sept. 6.

The association has been around more than 150 years and focuses on protecting lives and property from fire, electrical and life safety issues.

As a regional director, she’ll be in charge of stakeholder engagement for a five-state region. She also will be involved in connecting with people who use the association’s codes and standards. These codes are used for most industries, she said.

The decision to leave Eudora is sad, but because the position feels like the natural progression of her career, it wasn’t that hard to make the decision.

“It’s sort of a collection of everything I’ve done, so it made perfect sense,” Andrasevits said. “The difficult part, like I said, is leaving the department that I love so much.”

Andrasevits started her career as a teacher before deciding to become a firefighter because it “sounded fun” and fit her personality. She worked her way through the ranks before taking a 10-year hiatus from the service. She worked in management and training then became an inspector and investigator before coming on as chief in November 2021. Andrasevits is the city’s first female fire chief.

She’s been in the service for over 20 years.

Focusing on the connection between the community and the department was a step she feels she was able to take during her time as chief, she said. That comes in the form of community events at the station and involving the firefighters in community activities.

Getting to be part of these community organizations like Habitat for Humanity, Feeding Eudora and the school district has been the best part of her time as chief. That’s something she’ll miss, she said.

She’ll also miss the day-to-day duties of her current position, and getting to know the new young firefighters just starting their careers.

Andrasevits and her family will likely move closer to Kansas City eventually, but not for a while, she said.

As Assistant Chief Chris Hull reflects on his time working with Andrasevits, what stands out is her effort to connect with the community.

Hull said Andrasevits has helped him develop his emotional intelligence even further because of how much she excels in that area. It’s made him better at his job, he said.

“Something I told her is that I think that – just for me, personally – I have been very lucky to work for her, because her approach to things is different than what I’ve experienced in the past,” Hull said. “I think it’s helped me grow to be a better leader.”

She’s always faced problems with compassion and positivity, he said. Seeing the way she is able to problem solve with positivity and accomplish so much has been an inspiration, he said.

Investing in mental health initiatives for those within the service has also been a priority, and something very important to Hull, he said.

She’s also helped increase some firefighters’ interest in other career paths in the service, like inspections and investigations, he said. It helped bring in people who maybe otherwise wouldn’t have known about those things.

He said the next chief has big shoes to fill, and he hopes whoever that is will carry on her legacy of partnering with community organizations and getting residents into the station.

Hull – who has been with the station for about 15 years – said becoming Eudora’s chief has always been a goal of his but said he will just have to wait to hear more about the city’s plan for the transition. For now, he said he is focused on getting ready for Andrasevits’ departure and making sure the department is prepared.

Assistant City Manager Zack Daniel said the city is sad to see Andrasevits go, but is lucky to have Assistant Chief Chris Hull to step into the interim position in the meantime.

Daniel said Andrasevits has been involved with keeping the station moving forward, with things like the new strategic plan to set course for the next five years.

“Like she said last [Monday] night, sometimes you get an opportunity that you can’t really pass up, and we’ve all been in those positions, and sad to see her go, but excited for her and her future,” Daniel said.

The city was just told about her resignation last Friday. The city has not had time to sit down and figure out next steps yet, he said.

The job has not been posted yet, but Eudora Times will provide updates as they become available.

Daniel said there hasn’t yet been a discussion about when the search will begin or what the search will entail.

Reach reporter Sara Maloney at [email protected]. 

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