ROANOKE, Va. – A new space inside Roanoke Fire Station 5 now bears the name of a local trailblazer. Today, city leaders and fire officials dedicated the Rawleigh Quarles Community Room, honoring Roanoke’s first Black fire chief.
The new community room is designed to bring people together for meetings and outreach — reflecting Chief Quarles’ lifelong mission of inclusion, service and unity. Today’s ceremony included remarks from current Fire Chief David Hoback and city officials who say the room is a fitting tribute to a man who helped change the department from the inside out…