Ronnie Buren Metcalf was born January 25, 1971. He was raised in the small town of Denton, North Carolina, and graduated from South Davidson High School in 1990. On February 22, 1992, he married Carol Bell Metcalf. Together they were blessed with a son, Joshua Metcalf; a daughter, Holly Metcalf Worley (husband Anthony); granddaughters, Addilyn and Savannah; and grandson, Waylen.
Ronnie started serving his community in 1992 at Denton Fire Department. He briefly worked with Badin Lake Fire Department as well as Healing Springs Fire Department. In 2005, he was hired by the City of Lexington Fire Department and worked up to the rank of captain. When he was not working on shift, he would help teach fire classes at Rowan Cabarrus Community College. His favorite class to teach was pumps. He was always working on ways to better himself and help others.
He knew early in his life that he wanted to be a fireman. He always respected the fire service but most importantly he always wanted to honor those that made the ultimate sacrifice. Traveling to Maryland to visit the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial was very important to him.
Ronnie loved the Lord. If he was working a shift on Sunday, he would always watch his church’s service on Facebook. He loved gospel music, and he loved to sing in his church choir. Ronnie put GOD first in everything he did. He was a devoted husband to his wife Carol for 32 years. His famous saying to her was, “I love you more today than I did yesterday, but not as much as I will tomorrow.” The love Ronnie and Carol had was truly a gift from GOD.
On March 26, 2024, the Lexington Fire Department responded to a house fire. Ronnie responded with his crew and immediately went in to try to get control of the fire. Conditions quickly deteriorated, and all personnel were told to evacuate. Captain Metcalf found himself trapped inside. Once his crew realized he was still in the structure, they quickly went inside and were able to locate and remove him from the blaze. He was airlifted to Wake Forest Baptist Hospital. Sadly, on Friday, March 29, 2024, he succumbed to his injuries and the Lord called him home.
Ronnie was my soulmate. I fell in love with him on our first date. I knew that night that he was the person GOD wanted me to marry. He was my rock and my everything. I will never know why GOD chose to take him home when he did, but I know that every day I wake up, I am one day closer to being with him again.
