Wendy Dickens, MSW, is Executive Director of First 5 Shasta and a volunteer firefighter. She believes in the importance of starting fire prevention awareness early, and teaching young children the basics. Photo by Ashley Moore.
Becoming a volunteer firefighter is an excellent way to pay forward into the community. It takes hard work, training and commitment. The first step is to contact your area fire department to see if they have a volunteer program. For instance, Shasta County Fire works with Cal Fire to train and certify volunteer firefighters.
I have found the opportunity to be difficult at times, as well as a source of many wonderful opportunities to serve and learn in the community.
On medical emergency calls, volunteer firefighters help assess patients until the ambulance arrives and assist the professional EMTs when needed. On the scene of traffic accidents, they can be called on to help with patient assessment, extraction from vehicles, cleanup, fire suppression and any other tasks that are immediately needed.
Working on wildland fire operations may require volunteers to help create a fire line with tools, put out hose lines, or continue to assess the area for hot spots that could turn into an active fire again. Hiking into the wilderness is one of the fun parts of being on this type of assignment but can also be physically demanding.
Posted in: Community
Comment Policy: All viewpoints are welcome, but comments should remain relevant. Personal attacks, profanity, and aggressive behavior are not allowed. No spam, advertising, or promoting of products/services. Please, only use your real name and limit the amount of links submitted in your comment.
You Might Also Like...
Doesn’t Bug Me
I remember the afternoon when one of our girls, a toddler at the time, brought me a treasure from our yard clutched in her chubby hand. Holding her fist up to […]
Bike Kitchen Peddles Good Nutrition
Looking for new ideas for preparing healthy foods? Keep an eye out for a pedal-driven kitchen at local farmers markets and community events in Chico. Called the Edible Pedal, the […]
Plates for People – and the Planet
Mount Shasta’s Cheryl Boerger is saving the planet, one plate at a time. As a community service, she provides reusable plates, cutlery and glasses for various events, fundraisers and meetings […]
Fostering to Adoption – The Journey of a Lifetime
A blessing and a challenge Michael Logan and his wife, Terri, took their first steps into the world of foster/adoptive parents 26 years ago. “We were busy building our future […]
