“I am a firefighter because…”

"I am a firefighter because..."
It's actually a long story with a huge history lesson thrown in for good measure, but I'll give you the abridge version so no one falls asleep.
It all started for me at 6 months of age...{time travel sequence and a lot of weird music}, my Grandmother was the first female firefighter in the City and she had something to prove; she was out walking me in my stroller one Autumn afternoon when the fire whistle went off, not having a pager she took off running at a full sprint to get to the firehouse to see what the call was; this was to be my first adrenaline stroller ride through the streets of Lambertville.
I can honestly tell you that adrenaline was only a tinsy part of why I became a firefighter; the largest part would be because of my father. The love and passion he has for the fire service is just infectious, his determination to assist in whatever capacity and his drive to improve his knowledge and help inform and teach others are just some of the many reasons why I became a firefighter.
I have excelled exponentially and become the first women to hold every lieutenant position in our Department, I am the first women to drive multiple pieces of apparatus(which I prefer driving over my car)and my greatest achievement so far would have to be my current rank which is another first for the Department. It has taken a while for me to gain the respect I deserve; but you can't expect everyone to be glad that I became Captain overnight. It's been a long hard 5 years and I'm more proud of myself than my Father, Grandfather, Grandmother or Mother combined could ever be in me. It's been a long road and I can't wait to keep going, no mater how many obstacles come my way.

I plan on using this blog to write about the past events that have helped shape my career, the current things that go on (so I don't go mad keeping them inside), the future events and what is to come with the fire service in general. And I know a lot of retired and amazing firefighters that I would love to capture bits of the past and tell their story so that future fire fighters can respect and learn from the trials and tribulations of our crazy firefighting pasts. Hope you check back often!
Stay safe and always remember it will probably still be burning when you get there so it's best if everyone gets there in one piece!