Diversity enhances fire department
James C. Elenbaas, Jr.
Certified Fire Protection Specialist
Delhi Township Fire Department
Holt, Michigan
I really appreciated Carl Welser`s “Right, Left, and Ace: The Unbeatable Combination” (Volunteers Corner, September 1998). Since I`m from Michigan, I can truly appreciate the euchre analogy.
I have served in the volunteer fire service for the past two years and have seen the fear of diversity. Fortunately, I have never seen it from the people in command, but I have seen it from fellow firefighters. There is a fear that if you cannot perform in the manner of the “ideal firefighter” in their minds, you are not a valuable member of the team.
I wholeheartedly agree that there is a place for everyone in the fire service, both volunteer and career. I have served with people from all different backgrounds–EMS members, power company employees, assembly workers, and police officers. The diversity allows everyone a distinct place in the department and permits the interchange of ideas that helps educate everyone. Some people lack the ability to think on their feet that would be required of an officer, but give them a task to do and they will perform it in such a manner as to make you proud.
I fall in the opposite category. I can`t bench-press 300 pounds or run five miles in full gear carrying 150 feet of hose on my back, but as a certified fire protection specialist, I know about building construction as it relates to fire safety, fire alarms, and sprinkler systems. I may not meet the ideal of the “macho” firefighter in some people`s minds, so I guess that places me as a thinking firefighter. That`s just one more point of diversity available to a volunteer fire department that may not be available to a career department.
