It’s not every day the Glenwood Springs Fire Department welcomes one new firefighter to the team. Hiring five at the same time is even rarer still. 

And yet, that is precisely what happened Tuesday at the station on Eighth and Cooper, as three full-time firefighters and two recruits gathered together in their uniforms for the first time.

Reece McMillan, Brookelin Seckman, Lance Marshall, Jantzen Paris and Nate Hassell are all local to Colorado. 

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Their ties to the state are no coincidence.

“Three of the recruits … went to Glenwood Springs High School. That’s us trying to grab onto and [train] local kids,” Deputy Fire Chief Doug Gerrald said. 

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Aside from the benefit of group training and opportunities for bonding between recruits that come from hiring a larger group of Coloradans at once, Police Chief and Interim Fire Chief Joseph Deras said the department has taken purposeful measures to help keep local talent in Glenwood Springs. 

Glenwood Springs High School offers a program called the Student Involvement Program, which pairs students with hands-on opportunities in a field of interest. For students interested in firefighting, they’re brought to the station to spend some of their class time working with department heads and employees. 

“They spend time on calls with firefighters, they get some training from our firefighters and they get exposed to the fire service,” Deras said. “Our hope is that we start to cultivate them at a young age in the high school, so that they can find an interest in the fire service. … and then they come back to us upon graduation.” 

One of these students is upcoming high school senior Amanda Madden. 

“It’s generally just exposure,” Madden said. While in the program, she has gone on emergency calls, worked with firefighting gear, assisted EMTs in ambulance rides and more. “It really just serves to see what the fire department is … Being here, I’ve become very interested in firefighting.” 

What makes this group of five even more special is that Seckman is the fourth woman to ever serve at the department. 

“For a city our size, that’s pretty unique,” Deras said. 

Two of the hires are replacements for staff attrition, while three are newly created positions within the department. 

“The calls for service are increasing, the demand for fire services are increasing. We just had to have more staffing to meet those demands,” Deras said. “So, the city was gracious in providing for three brand- new positions.” 

Three of the new hires — Seckman, Marshall and Paris — are recent graduates of the fire academy and are preparing to begin their full-time position with the department. The other two — McMillan and Hassell, still referred to as “recruits” — are being sent to the fire academy as part of their employment. 

“They still need to do some work here locally, in-house, just so we can see what their skill level is like,” Deras said, describing the new hires’ steady transition into full-time work. “They’re certified EMTs also, so we don’t want to just send them out … It’s like an officer. We wouldn’t send them out into a high-speed chase on day one.” 

Deras said the process of finding the five recruits required several months of searching and background checks.

With the Glenwood Springs Fire Department receiving nearly 2,500 calls every year (and counting), Deras said the additional staffing will help the department better-serve the needs of the community, especially as fire seasons in the county bring more and more calls to the station. 

“I know you all have choices, and you chose to come to us,” Deras said, addressing the five firefighters on Tuesday. “So in return, we’re committed to making sure that you guys are safe, you’re professional at all times, representing the city in the very best light, because you have all these resources at your disposal in order to do that.” 

McMillan, having lived in Glenwood Springs for most of his life, said it had been his goal to work for this fire department ever since developing an interest in the field.  

“It’s one of the more prestigious departments in our local valley,” McMillan said. “And to work with Glenwood Springs out of all departments, it means a lot. I think we are held to a higher standard, and that’s what it should be.” 

For Seckman, it was the technical side of their rescue teams and equipment that drew her toward Glenwood Springs. 

“I did my ride-along and was able to experience a lot of the good culture that’s out here,” she said. “I’ve done over 20 ride-alongs, and this place really stuck out to me … This job is 80% medical, so you see a lot more special tech-rescue.” 

The new firefighters aren’t alone in their motivations for choosing to serve in Glenwood Springs, as Deras himself noticed some of the same draws when he first arrived in the valley. 

“Early in my career, I worked for a major police department in the United States. And when I worked there, I felt like we were just a piece of equipment,” Deras reflected. “We never really thought that anybody knew our name … So when I bring people in over here in public safety, police and fire, I want all of you guys to feel like everybody knows your name. You know my name. We know a little bit about your families. And so you know you’re not just a piece of equipment, but there’s a personal connection between me and every single person.”