Rachael Staebell is a lieutenant for the Colorado Springs (CO) Fire Department. She began her career in public safety in 2000 as an EMT for a local ambulance company. In 2001, she became a volunteer firefighter with the City of Fountain in Colorado and then earned a position as its first paid, full-time female firefighter in 2002. Rachael was hired by Colorado Springs in the fall of 2005. By 2012, she was promoted to the rank of paramedic; and, in 2016 was promoted to her current rank. Rachael is the vice president of Women in Fire and also serves as the group’s HOT coordinator, teaching and coordinating hands-on training at conferences. Rachael currently serves as a mentor to firefighters from several different states and actively participates in local recruitment and diversity panels.

Bassel Ibrahim is a 20 years student of the fire service and currently serves as the Company Officer of Tower 1 for the Orlando Fire Department. He began his career in Volusia County, FL, and has spent the majority of his time on Special Operations units, including Orlando Heavy Rescue 1, Tower 6, and Volusia Squads 35 & 23. He also served as a member of Florida Task Force 9 for seven years.