AFTER MORE than three decades of incredible service to Lincoln County, Doug Campbell has achieved a career milestone, taking on the role of Emergency Management Agency (EMA) director and fire chief for Lincoln County. For Campbell, this represents more than professional advancement. Above all, Campbell is proud to serve and help the people in his own hometown.
The role of EMA director is a huge responsibility, but one that Campbell has spent decades training to do. Campbell oversees emergency management operations and coordinates with volunteer fire departments throughout Lincoln County. It’s a job that requires excellent leadership skills and the ability to build strong relationships with all of the different departments and residents in the area.
“I truly believe that every job I have had since I started working has played into who I am,” Campbell said. “This started with a great upbringing from my parents, who taught my younger brother and me strong work ethics and respect. My wife has also always been supportive as we worked to raise our own family.”
Campbell married his high school sweetheart, Cindy Barnes Campbell. They will celebrate 42 years of marriage in October 2026. They raised two children. Their daughter, Krissie, lives in Cookeville with her husband, Andrew, and their two boys, Tucker, 8, and Hayes, 4. Their son, Trent, a Rutherford County firefighter, lives in Lincoln County with his wife, Hailey, a school teacher at Flintville, and their daughters, Clarissa, 5, and Remi, 2.
Campbell’s respect for his family led him to join the fire service. His grandfather was a firefighter for the city of Fayetteville.
“My papa was a firefighter, so maybe it was instilled within me,” Campbell said.
Campbell joined emergency services as a volunteer firefighter with Lincoln County Volunteer Fire Rescue, and it just really stuck with him.
While building his career as a firefighter, he also worked in other industries. His professional background includes diverse roles, each contributing skills that would make him a great leader in emergency management.
He worked with Otasco in sales and management, where he honed his customer service and leadership abilities. Next, he worked at Amana Refrigeration, where his responsibilities increased his operational knowledge. Then, in 1992, Campbell began working for South Design and Marketing, a rep firm where he gained experience in technical sales and client relations.
His career path shifted again in 1995, when a Canadian company opened a facility in Tennessee and offered him the shipping and receiving manager position. Over those four years, he managed logistics and operations, developing organizational skills and management experience.
But in 1999, the call of sales brought him back to the electronics industry. Powell reached out asking if he’d like to return to the sales department, and Campbell accepted, where he worked for many years while maintaining his commitment to volunteer firefighting
Throughout these career moves, his passion for being a volunteer firefighter never wavered. He completed his rookie class in 1992. Two years later, in 1994, he took a Fire Department Instructor class. This would open up new possibilities in his firefighting career.
By 1996, Campbell was working part time as an instructor in fire services classes for the State of Tennessee. His first basic firefighting class
was taught in Huntland, Tennessee, where he began sharing his knowledge with new recruits.
Campbell credits Mike Hall, former EMA director and fire chief, with getting him into training.
“This introduced me to Jimmy Thompson, former director of the Tennessee Fire Academy and fire chief of Pulaski, Tennessee,” Campbell said. “Chief Thompson not only became a mentor, but a lifelong close friend until he passed.”
One incident has stayed with Campbell and given him a strong desire to teach the next generation of first responders.
“It was at a house fire where I did not follow what the chief had taught me, and it could have turned out badly. Thankfully, it did not, but that made me want to get into instruction.”
Campbell earned his Tennessee State Instructor I Certificate through the Tennessee Firefighting Commission. His teaching responsibilities grew progressively more advanced, and he eventually began instructing some of the state’s most sophisticated courses for interior firefighters — the men and women who enter burning structures to save lives and property. This role is a huge responsibility, as he mentors firefighters who will almost certainly find themselves in life-or-death situations.
Campbell credits his success to working alongside exceptional instructors throughout Tennessee. These mentoring relationships helped shape his approach to firefighting and teaching, and he has made lifelong friends and connections through this program.
As EMA director and fire chief, Campbell oversees emergency management operations and coordinates with volunteer fire departments throughout Lincoln County. This role combines his decades of frontline firefighting experience, teaching and mentoring expertise, and his intimate understanding of Lincoln County’s needs and resources. Campbell steps into the role as someone who has served shoulder-to-shoulder with the many volunteers he now leads.
“As EMA director and county fire chief, my goal for all those who help me in the office and volunteer with the fire department is to continue building upon this foundation to meet the needs of our county for many years to come,” Campbell said. GN
