Being The Wife of a Volunteer Firefighter Isn't Always Fun, But I Can't Help But Be Proud

My husband has been a volunteer firefighter for longer than I have known him.  It was always a part of our relationship. but I think it became more challenging after we had kids.  Things became less predictable at that point, and throw a firecall in the middle of that unpredictability and it can be sheer chaos.  I want to clarify what a volunteer firefighter is.  They do get paid, but only when they are out at a call. They are on call pretty much anytime they are home or in the area.  They wear pagers that notify them of the emergencies that they must respond to.  They must live in the community of the fire hall that they work out of.

Basically, that means that volunteer firefighters' free time is only free until they get a fire call.  Also, because they live in the area that they serve, many of them know the victims of the fire, the casualties of that car accident and the patient of the medical call.  In fact, my husband has responded to calls for his family members, when his grandmother passed away and when his brother was in a car accident.  They run into buildings when everyone else is running out, they console families and family members. 

They run out on holiday dinners, hockey practices, school plays. They miss bedtimes and stories. They have even had to leave their own Christmas party to respond to calls.  They've left dinner as soon as it's served and eaten reheated meals more times than you can count.  But they do it because they love it.  They do it because they care.  They do it because they want to make a difference.

They acknowledge their successes, they mourn their losses.  They are thanked, they are yelled at, they are loved, they are hated.  They accept that in these situations, they cannot save everything and everyone, but they fight to win.  They accept people's kind words and the words filled with anger and they continue to fight.

The fire department is a second family to us.  They are truly brothers.  When one bleeds, they seem to all feel the pain.  I may complain from time to time about changed plans, late dinners, sad kids who miss their dad, but I wouldn't ask to change it.  I am proud to say that my husband is a volunteer firefighter.  I am proud to see his selflessness and concern for our community.  I am just proud of him.