WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL FIREFIGHTER?

The mere fact that you are a firefighter - paid, industrial or institutional in no way
Makes you a professional. You become a professional firefighter only when you exhibit the
Knowledge, attitude, skill, and habits that have been honed to the highest degree of education,
Training, experiences, and Love for your profession.

The Example and conduct you display at the scene will always be the only yardstick by
which your peers and the people you serve can judge you and the organization you represent.

That judgment will form the opinion of each and every person with you and your
Organization, and that judgment will precede you in the form of your reputation as a

"PROFESSIONAL"

This is where your local firefighter goes to work every day.  Let's not forget to thank them for what they do.

My little girl looked startled
as a fire engine passed in haste,
And from my rear-view mirror,
I saw the expression on her face.

Her eyes were opened wide
filled with curiosity and fear.....
She said, "mommy, what is that big truck
with the loud noise that I hear?"

I explained that the "truck" carried
men and women who's only aim
was to help someone in danger
though they may not know his name.

She said, "mommy, aren't those the ones
who wear the shiny hats?"
And I said, "yes honey, that's right....
but it means much more than that."

Those people are trained and dedicated
and many times have shown....
that to save the life of someone else,
they'll often risk their own.

Then my other child joined in
with a bright inquisitive stare.
"If the people they help are strangers,
then what would make them care?"

Her question made me stop and think,
what are the rewards of being "brave?"
Is it the smiles on the faces
of the children they may save?

Or the beholden expression of a man
standing beside his wife
watching firefighters battling to save
the house he'd worked for all his life?

Or pulling someone out
of a burning house or car?
There's a memory like that for them
behind every burn or scar.
The word "courage" is described as:
the strength to withstand fear
and firefighters use that courage
many times in their career.

So, to answer her question honestly
and explain why they're so "daring,"
I said...."they're very special people
with an uncommon sense of caring."

Linda Ellis