Wyoming County Emergency Services Director Dean Meadows is “blessed way beyond what I deserve,” he believes.

A deeply religious man, Meadows lives his life by Phillipians 4:11, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”

He is a man content with his family, with his job, and with his home.

As a single father, Meadows raised three children, Lyndsie, 22, Haleigh, 20, and Gregory, 19.

“I raised them as a single parent for most of their lives, all the while I was working in a very stressful and demanding job,” he said.

“I had to be mommy and daddy both to my kids,” he said.

“I was never too good at the mommy part,” he recalled.

“I never could give them all the attention they needed.

“They never used our situation as a crutch or an excuse, but took responsibility for their own lives.

“All three have become great young Christian adults with exemplary moral character and purpose,” he said.

While his children are grown now, Meadows still faces a demanding job each day. Overseeing county Emergency Services puts him at the center of every crisis and natural disaster.

Whether it be catastrophic flooding or destructive winter storms, Meadows works to protect the safety of residents and their property.

Meadows was born and raised in Pineville, the county seat. His office overlooks the courthouse square and downtown area.

“I think of Wyoming County as my people, and I will do whatever I can to help my people,” he said. “I love my job and I really like what I do.”

Sometimes, however, Meadows feels like he falls short of his own expectations for himself.

As an example, he cites an elderly couple who lost everything in the May 2009 flooding.

“They fell through the cracks,” Meadows said.

The couple couldn’t provide proof of ownership for their mobile home lost in the flooding.

“It was one of those situations where they bought a trailer from somebody in Mingo County. The person they bought it from didn’t have a title, so they didn’t have a title.

“FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) has guidelines and regulations for a reason,” Meadows noted, citing the number of times FEMA has been ripped off.

“But I knew these people were telling the truth. I knew they had owned this place for 20 years, just like they said. But they couldn’t prove it to FEMA. I just felt helpless,” Meadows recalled.

One of three boys, Meadows has an identical twin brother.

“We’re mirror twins,” he explained. “I’m left-handed, he’s right-handed. He parted his hair on one side, I parted mine on the other. It was just like looking in a mirror.”

While their parents could always tell them apart, their teachers could not.

“We had some interesting times in school,” he recalled with a laugh.

He said their teacher allowed the first incident of switching to slide, even laughing at their joke. She didn’t find it funny after that, Meadows said.

After graduating from West Virginia University, Meadows wanted a career as a sports writer. However, he settled in as a substitute teacher at Huff Consolidated School. He also served as the principal and a teacher at Turkey Ridge Baptist Church School, where his children attended.

Then, he went on to be one of the first corrections officer hired in the county. That job led to a becoming a deputy sheriff.

“I was on the midnight shift and it was pretty quiet in those days,” he recalled of his three years as a deputy. “So I spent my time driving all the roads in Wyoming County. It was a way of learning the county and I met a lot of people that way.”

Though he wouldn’t want to serve as a deputy again, it was a good experience for his job as county Emergency Services director, he believes.

In 1997, the county Commission added to his duties by making him responsible for flood plain management.

At the time, Wyoming County was on probation with FEMA and about to be sanctioned, which meant no one in the county could have obtained flood insurance and no one would have been able to get assistance from FEMA in the event of a disaster.

It took Meadows three years to bring the county back into federal compliance.

“We came off probation in July of 2000,” he said. “In 2001, we had the flood of record.”

On July 8, 2001, all but two communities in Wyoming County were hit by devastating flooding. At the time, it was termed the worst disaster in West Virginia history.

Though he has had much frustration, he’s had much success in the flood plain management program.

One man moved his mobile home into the “most vulnerable” location in the county after the flood plain ordinance was adopted. Meadows forced him to raise the home.

“He posted a sign in his yard that said ‘No county officials allowed on this property.’

“In 2001, every home around him, the ones that had been grandfathered in, was flooded. He called me and thanked me.”

The man told Meadows if he hadn’t been made to bring his home into compliance, he’d have lost everything.

“That’s a good feeling,” Meadows said. “Most people now are very understanding of flood plain management; 2001 changed everything.”

Meadows has held his job for nearly two decades.

“In five years, I can see myself right here. In 20 more years, I can see myself right here. I love it.”