From Ambulance to Firehouse: My Journey to Becoming a Firefighter

I started my career path with an ambition to be a police officer, influenced by TV shows like Dragnet and Adam-12. However, my journey took an unexpected turn when my dream faced physical constraints. As a teenager, I needed to reach the height requirement of 5'8" to join the police force, making it a challenging dream to achieve at the time. Instead, I found myself drawn towards a career in healthcare before ultimately choosing to extend my help in a way that would impact not just individuals but entire communities.

Medical School and Emergency Services

After a brief stint at medical school, where I worked nights and weekends attending to ambulance calls and engaged in fire suppression activities, I realized that my true calling lay in “street medicine” and firefighting. My passion for helping people and the challenges I faced were what truly drove me. The transition from medical school to becoming a paramedic in 1976 marked a significant shift in my career. By the early 1980s, I had become a county paramedic in the Ann Arbor, Michigan area, serving a service where 80% of the calls were medical in nature, making the border between EMS and firefighting rather thin.

The Decision Between Fire and Police Work

My decision to become a firefighter over a police officer was influenced by my lack of patience for dealing with drunk and disorderly calls. I also had zero tolerance for incidents of domestic violence, which I felt strongly about resolving through medical or firefighting assistance rather than law enforcement. My experience as a firefighter often required me to use my skills in crisis management, which was something I found more fulfilling than dealing with the challenges of law enforcement. During these times, I would actually deploy with the U.S. Army, where I excelled as a soldier, further emphasizing my ability to serve in a high-stress, highly disciplined role.

A Full-Time Firefighter and a Teaching Role

In 1986, I took a teaching position at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, which eventually led me to work for a company providing ground and helicopter EMS in North Texas. It was there that I learned about a position in the sheriff's office for a paramedic to work in the jail medical service. By this time, the height requirements for law enforcement had been significantly reduced, allowing me to apply to the police academy while working full-time in the jail system. My law enforcement career thrived, and I began to see myself less as an active medic and more as someone contributing in a different but equally impactful way.

The Impact of Being a Firefighter

While I never became a police officer, my journey as a firefighter has been nothing short of fulfilling. Watching those big red fire trucks racing down the road still evokes a mix of fond memories and a sense of pride. In a way, I consider myself fortunate to have found a career path that combines my desire to help others with the thrill of facing new challenges each day. It’s true that firefighters need heroes too, and I am proud to have been one of them, even if my heroism took a different form than I initially imagined. Even though I haven't been actively working as an EMT since 1990, my skills and dedication continue to make a difference in the community, and my heart still beats for those red trucks and the brave men and women who operate them.