Dad inspires son to follow in footsteps

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April 9, 2009

BY BRYAN WLOCK The Tribune-Democrat Thu Apr 09, 2009, 10:57 AM EDT

I have been volunteering as a firefighter since I was 13 years old. I currently help at the Windber Fire Department and plan to make firefighting my career.

My dad inspired me to choose this path because he was a fire chief for 13 years with the Monarch Fire Company in Exeter, Luzerne County.

I have participated in a district Skills USA competition in firefighting hosted by Greater Johnstown Career and Technology Center and finished in second place. There were about eight other students who participated.

Some of the areas the contestants were judged were a written test, hose-line advancement, donning a self-contained breathing apparatus and knot tying.

I received the Student of the Month Award for February because of my second- place finish, the highest score from a GJCTC student in protective services at a Skills USA competition since the program’s inception in 2005.

In the protective services program area, students can earn training certifications that would cost them a lot of money if taken outside the class, but at the career and technology center, they are offered free.

So far, I have received certification for National Incident Management System, fire extinguisher and CPR and first aid.

Protective services students help with school fire drills and check to make sure everyone is out of the building, the doors are closed, the lights are off and that nothing is left behind.

They also help with weather drills and make sure everyone is standing and facing a locker and make sure the classrooms are empty.

We have a first aid bag ready in the protective services classroom in case of an emergency. Students also check dates on fire extinguishers and order new ones when necessary and check heart defibrillators for batteries strength and proper working condition.

In addition to high school, I also took a 16-hour mining class at GJCTC offered by Penn State.

The class went on a field trip to a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health mine in Pittsburgh.

I took the class because there are a lot of mines in Windber and it may help me understand what it is like underground if I am ever involved in rescue operations. For example, in a mine roof that has long screws, if they are rusty, cracked or bowed you can tell that the mine roof may collapse.

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