I am an American Firefighter. I am the person who has chosen the fire service as their career. I am the person who serves their community as a volunteer. At the moment of truth, we are the same person. Humanity lies at the center of our hearts.
Service is the engine that powers our soul.
Despite the naysayers who would divide us into warring camps and pit us one against the other, we are a fraternity of brave people dedicated to serving humanity. I was there with the Jamestown settlers who battled the blaze that destroyed their warehouse that first year in this great new land. I was at the side of Benjamin Franklin when he formed and fashioned the fire protective service in Philadelphia. I was with the Zouves who saved parts of Washington, DC with their spectacular acrobatic firefighting during the Civil War. I choked on the smoke in Chicago as flames ravaged that great city, while at the same time a few hundred miles to the north I battled to save Peshtigo, Wisconsin.