Brotherhood

A little insight to the world of fire service.

In the spring of 2001, at the urging of a church member, I joined Eure Fire Department in Gates County. It was a small department that ran 26 calls that year. I grew a deep respect for the men and women that served in EFD. They were farmers, plant workers, trade workers, etc who loved their community and did their part to help out. They had a very small tax base and the equipment they had was old but well maintained because the community supported them and the members took great pride in their equipment. They patiently taught this city slicker how to dress out, use an air pack, drive a truck and fight fire. Though I didn’t earn a single FF1&2 certification, they laid a foundation of common sense and practical know how. They let me into the brotherhood.

On the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, I was finishing up a bookcase for Kaylee’s nursery. I had promised to have it finished by the time she was born and that time was closing in. Shelley came out to the workshop to tell me that the Today show had just shown that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. I thought to myself, “Hmmm, that’s a terrible accident.” I told her I would come in when I finished the clear coat.

By the time I came inside, it was apparent our nation was under attack. I watched as emergency service personnel responded to the scene and wondered what it would be like to respond to that kind of scene. I had not yet learned that steel expands 9 inches over a hundred foot span at 1,000 degrees or that such heat and expansion could cause the beam to fail in the middle of the span. So it was unthinkable that the towers could fall.

Like many of you I watched for what seemed like eternity in stunned awe at the aftermath. Then, in the chaos and noise, the unmistakable sound of firefighter PASS (personal alert safety system) devices pierced through. PASS devices arm when air supply is turned on to an air pack and alarm when they are immobile for 30 seconds. So, the hundreds of sounding PASS devices were a clear sign firefighters lay in the rubble, most likely dead. Even though I was clearly a rookie and the term firefighter could only be used loosely to describe me, in that moment, I felt as if I had watched my brothers die.

About 10:30 that morning I made my way to the fire department and lowered the flag to half staff. I went into the truck bay and sat on the tailboard of the engine, prayed and cried. I walked into that bay as an individual who was an aspiring firefighter. I walked out as one of the worldwide family of firefighters. Don’t get me wrong, I was still unskilled and green. But, a transformation of sorts had taken place inside me. It was no longer about filling a need in the community or the adrenaline rush of a fire call. It was life and death. It was watching my brothers’ backs. It was living out the biblical standard of love: “Greater love has no one than to lay down his life for his friends”

While it was unlikely I would ever face that kind of decision, I prayed God would give me that kind of courage if so.

In the spring of 2002, we moved to Greensboro and into the Pinecroft Sedgefield Fire Department District which I joined. There was an immediate kinship. Men like Ricky Willets, Vernon Ward, Ken Gray, Kendall McCarter, Jeff Thomas and Tim Fitts taught me so much. They helped me get my interior firefighter certification. Later, Richard Franklin patiently endured 9 of my required 12 hours of driving so I could be checked off as a driver. Steve Allred was riding in the captains seat the first time I drove emergency traffic and unbelievably did not cuss one time, even when, in my excitement, I waited too long to brake for a left turn.

Through the years, I’ve had the privilege to sit in hospitals, play golf, attend church, lead funerals, perform weddings, train, run calls, do CPR, walk through critical incident stress debriefing and just do life with the most amazing men and women. In 2017, I even worked as a paid firefighter for a year. I gained even more respect for those that serve and wouldn’t take anything for my year with C-shift.

It has been my honor and privilege to be counted among the family of firefighters. There are way too many funny stories to tell. There are too many pranks that are too good to spoil by sharing. There are way too many heartbreaking calls to recount. There are not enough words to describe that handful of calls that seem nothing short of miraculous.

Brothers and sisters, thank you for taking me in and teaching me. Than you for making me better and watching my back. Thank you for your sacrifice and work to serve your fellow fighters and the community.

Your fellow sojourner,

Carl