Why are you a firefighter?

In my last post I told you the reasons why I am a firefighter.  Now, let me ask you why you are a firefighter.  What called you to this profession.  What drives your passion for being a firefighter.  Lets take that one step further, do you have a passion for this job?  Are you in this job for the right reasons.

Let me step up on my soap box for a second if I may.  Nothing frustrates me more than seeing someone in this job for the wrong reasons.  They are typically pretty easy to spot.  They are the ones that have more lights on their personal vehicle than we have on our trucks. They wear the t-shirts with the cheesy cliches.  Typically they are a walking billboard that says "Look at me!! I'm a firefighter!!!"  Not all of the folks that fit this description are in this job for the wrong reasons.  Some people like that stuff and that is fine for them but I wonder if they realize that whether they mean to or not their actions influence the public perception of the fire service as a whole.  The people I am describing are the ones that want to be noticed and want people to think they are cool because they are a firefighter.  They want to be seen in the firefighter t-shirt and be seen riding around in a fire truck.  Their reason for being a firefighter is for their own personal glory.  They are not in the fire service to help the public in which we serve.  These people drive me nuts.  From my experience they don't take the job seriously.  They don't want to train or do the "grunt" work.  They want to look cool and they want the glory without putting in the work.  These people have no idea about the tradition of the fire department and what being a fire fighter truly means.  They typically have no pride in their department or their job, they are there for selfish reasons.  

So why are these people bad.  Well they can certainly give your department a negative image if you are not careful.  People see them speeding to the fire station or to calls, running red lights and swerving through traffic.  The public sees this and assumes that all firefighters are like this.  Its not a good image for firefighters.  They can also be a liability on the fire ground.  Never mind the fact they drove erratically to get to the call, you also haven't seen them at training for the past 3 months.  Is that the person you want going in on the line with you?  Do you want to depend them to pull you out of a burning building should something happen to you?  I certainly don't.  I want my partner to be the guy who has been at training and who has taken the time to hone his skills and become the best they can be.  I want to be surrounded by firefighters who have pride in their job, their department and their community.  They want to provide the best possible service to the public that they can, after all that is why we are here.

I am not trying to be "holier than thou" here but I care about the fire service and those that worked so hard before me to make this the greatest job in the world.  I am just a regular Joe who takes pride in his job and loves the fire service.  I don't want to villainize these people but I don't want to make excuses for them either.  Some of them may not know anything different, that just might be the culture of their department.  I have a couple of challenges for you.  First of all, take a look at yourself and ask yourself why are you here.  Why are you a firefighter?  Are you here for the right reasons?  Second, if you have these types of people on your department... do something about it.  I am not saying treat them poorly or run them out.  Instead, I want you to challenge them, teach them the traditions of the fire service.  Lead by example.  Show them how to be a firefighter for the right reasons.  Help them become the type of fire fighter your department needs.  It may take weeks, months or years but if you truly care about your department it will be worth it.