top of page

400 Best Firefighter Leadership Quotes: Heroes (2023)

1. “I have no ambition in this world but one, and that is to be a fireman. The position may, in the eyes of some, appear to be a lowly one; but we who know the work which the fireman has to do believe that his is a noble calling. Our proudest moment is to save lives. Under the impulse of such thoughts, the nobility of the occupation thrills us and stimulates us to deeds of daring, even of supreme sacrifice.” – Edward Crocker


2. “Practice does not make perfect, nor is it meant to. Practice simply increases your repertoire of ways to recover from your mistakes


3. “Aspire rather to be a hero than merely appear one. ”


4. “Firefighter appreciation isn’t just a once a year affair because firefighters are there for each of us every day.” – Byron Pulsifer


5. “I was a firefighter, and because I couldn’t save the children I saw in the burning building, then I am forever, every night, trapped in a nightmare.” – Nicole Russin-McFarland


6. “BE A THINKING FIREFIGHTER. DON’T BE THIS CHECK THE BOX, MINIMUM POWERPOINT INSTRUCTOR, FIREFIGHTER.”


7. “PEDALS ARE STRONG FRONT TO BACK. THEY HAVE NO LATERAL STABILITY. YOU CAN JUST FISH IN THERE AND HOOK THE WEBBING AROUND THE PEDALS.”


8. “Being a firefighter is a combination of routine activities, intense training, and life-threatening situations–and those activities can switch instantly at the sound of an alarm.” – Lisa Thompson


9. “Firemen never know what they will encounter on each call but proceed with the same level of commitment and service. ” – Byron Pulsifer


10. “In West Virginia, we’re all family. We know how firefighters and policemen honor their own and we feel our miners deserve to be honored in a similar way. ” ― Ginger Baker


11. “When the bell rang, a firefighter was expected to stop everything to help others.” – Glenn Corbett


12. “Firefighter appreciation isn’t just a once a year affair because firefighters are there for each of us everyday.” – Byron Pulsifer


13. “I can think of no more stirring symbol of man’s humanity to man than a fire engine. ”


14. “Train the way you play”


15. “The special ops guys and the firefighters around the world have this great phrase. They say, ‘Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast,’ and that is true. Everything I’ve accomplished in my life has been because of that attitude. ”


16. “My dad’s a firefighter, so I know what it’s like for policemen and firefighters to be on their own on Christmas Day. ” – J. J. Watt


17. “But aloud the praises, and give the victor-crown. To our noble hearted Firemen, who fear not danger’s frown. ”


18. “You might be a firefighter if the microwave goes off and you run out of the house thinking it was your pager. ”


19. “Give your knowledge freely – expect nothing in return”. Ray Merrill, Chief, Oak Harbor FD, Oak Harbor, WA


20. “Firefighters go where they are needed, sometimes ignoring the dangers even when no one is inside a burning building to be saved.”


21. “True courage is being afraid, and going ahead and doing your job anyhow. That’s what courage is. ” – General Norman Schwarzkopf


22. “September 11 We thought we’d outdistanced history Told our children it was nowhere near; Even when history struck Columbine, It didn’t happen here. We took down the maps in the classroom, And when they were safely furled, We told the young what they wanted to hear, That they were immune from a menacing world. But history isn’t a folded-up map, Or an unread textbook tome; Now we know history’s a fireman’s child Waiting at home alone.” ~ Richard Peck


23. “You can’t fix stupid, but you can break common sense.” Dennis Bitters, Fire Chief, Ripon Fire District, Ripon, CA


24. “I can think of no more stirring symbol of man’s humanity to man than a fire engine.” – Kurt Vonnegut


25. “I used to think I’d like to be a fireman – in fact, I still would – and the only drawback I could see was coming back to the firehouse, after a day of fighting fires, and still having to put in an eight-hour day writing.” ~ David Mamet


26. “Obama says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers. Did he not get the message of Wisconsin? The American people did. It’s time for us to cut back on government and help the American people.” ~ Mitt Romney


27. “TRAINING is the hub to every issue in the fire service”


28. “Aspire rather to be a hero than merely appear one. ’” – Baltasar Gracian


29. “Training Today for Safety and Survival Tomorrow”


30. “Remember, the firemen are rarely necessary. The public itself stopped reading of its own accord.” ~ Ray Bradbury


31. “Teamwork divides the task and multiplies the success.”


32. “Courage is fear holding on a minute longer. ” – General George Patton


33. “WE’RE NOT LIFTING THE DASH 18 INCHES LIKE THE TEXTBOOK TRAINING. A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE’S FEET ARE PINNED UNDERNEATH THE DASH, WE’RE JUST TRYING TO GET THE DASH TO WHERE IT USED TO BE.”


34. “Pride, honor, dedication, everyday soldiers, and heart. These are just a few of the words we’d attribute to the men and women who risk their lives every day to protect us.” – Lauren Reed, Cole Services


35. “Firefighter required to perform all the necessary tasks in order to control an emergency situation. ” ― Dennis


36. “WHEN YOU NEED LENGTH AND STRENGTH, YOU NEED TO GO TO THE PARATECHS.”


37. “Firefighters are people who are trained to put out fires. They help people in many ways. Firefighters rescue people and animals in trouble. It is hard work.” – Melissa A. Settle


38. “I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. ” – Christopher Reeve


39. “Real heroes are men who fall and fail and are flawed, but win out in the end because they’ve stayed true to their ideals and beliefs and commitments.” – Kevin Costner


40. “The sun burnt every day. It burnt Time. The world rushed in a circle and turned on its axis and time was busy burning the years and the people anyway, without any help from him. So if he burnt things with the firemen, and the sun burnt Time, that meant everything burnt!” ~ Ray Bradbury


41. “Sometimes people get killed. Every firefighter has to deal with death of a brother firefighter at some point in his life.” – Dennis Smith


42. “The yearbook voted me most likely to be scraped off an onramp by a puking fireman.” ~ Christopher Titus


43. “Anytime I get to help the firefighters, I will. I’m really lucky to be in a position to help. ” ― Adam Ferrara


44. “SEARCH AND RESCUE ARE NOT SYNONYMOUS THEY SHOULDN’T EVEN BE IN THE SAME PHRASE. IT’S SEARCH, AND THEN RESCUE IS SEPARATE. IT’S SO OFTEN WE SAY SEARCH AND RESCUE AND NEVER KNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN WE FIND SOMEBODY.”


45. “Firefighters never die, they just burn forever in the hearts of the people whose lives they saved.” – Susan Murphree


46. “Training — Mess up here and Not of the Fireground”


47. “Life doesn’t always go the way you expect it, but you came here to become a firefighter. If you give up today, think of all the lives you won’t save tomorrow.” – Roberts Gannaway


48. “Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brace by doing brave acts. ” – Aristotle


49. “When a man becomes a fireman his greatest act of bravery has been accomplished. What he does after that is all in the line of work. ” – Edward Croker


50. “If crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fire, what do freedom fighters fight?”


51. “All firefighters are leaders.” – Chief Bobby Halton


52. “True courage is being afraid, and going ahead and doing your job anyhow. That’s what courage is.” – General Norman Schwarzkopf


53. “I have no ambition in this world but one, and that is to be a fireman. The position may, in the eyes of some, appear to be a lowly one; but we who know the work which the fireman has to do believe that his is a noble calling. Our proudest moment is to save lives. Under the impulse of such thoughts, the nobility of the occupation thrills us and stimulates us to deeds of daring, even of supreme sacrifice. ” – Edward Crocker


54. “My dad was a New York City cop. His father was a New York City fireman. And my mother’s dad was a city taxi driver.” ~ Joe Lhota


55. “WHEN YOU ARE PUTTING A CHAIN ON THE STRUT, PUT THE WELDED PIECE CLOSEST TO THE STRUT.”


56. “Firefighters go where they’re needed, sometimes ignoring the dangers even when no one is inside a burning building to be saved. ” – Bill Dedman


57. “Kids are always asked, What are you going to be when you grow up? I needed an answer. So instead of saying, a fireman, or a policeman, I said, a reporter.” ~ Charles Kuralt


58. “British aren’t really known for their physical loveliness but firemen, generally speaking, are gorgeous.” ~ Emma Thompson


59. “Anytime I get to help the firefighters, I will. I’m really lucky to be in a position to help.” – Adam Ferrara


60. “I tend to get comfortable with the dialogue and find out who the person is in the script and try to hit that. People are sort of independent of their occupations and their pastimes. You don’t play a politician or a fireman or a cowboy – you just play a person.” ~ Billy Campbell


61. “Firefighters are true heroes that you can see every day. They work long hours each and every week, and they do not ask for special attention.” – Brian Rogers


62. “You have to do something in your life that is honorable and not cowardly if you are to live in peace with yourself, and for the firefighter it is fire. ”


63. “Becoming fearless isn’t the point. That’s impossible. It’s learning how to control your fear, & how to be free from it, that’s the point. Necessity of action takes away the fear of the act, and makes bold resolution the favorite of fortune.” – Francis Quarles


64. “If you cannot tell me how to do it or show me how to do it, YOU cannot do it — Bennie Crane”


65. “‘NEVER PUT YOUR HAND IN THE MOUTH OF AN ALLIGATOR. ALWAYS STICK THEM IN THE ASS.’ SO WRAP IT FROM THE BACK, THAT WAY YOU KEEP YOUR HANDS OUT.”


66. “Fighting fires is very risky. Some firefighters have to climb very tall buildings. They have to enter rooms that are on fire. They have to be brave. And, they have to know how to stay calm.” – Melissa A. Settle


67. “EVERYTHING WE TEACH, USE IT AS A BUFFET TABLE. WE ALL KNOW WE GO TO THE BUFFET BAR, ‘HEY I WANT TO TRY THIS. I WANT TO TRY THAT.’ IF I DON’T WANT TO TRY THAT, I LEAVE IT AT THE TABLE.”


68. “I’ve had tons of odd jobs, but I think that I would probably be a fireman because you get to see the results of your job. You get there and there is a house on fire. You leave and there’s not a fire anymore.” ~ Luke Perry


69. “When fire is cried and danger is neigh, ‘God and the fireman’ is the people’s cry; but when ‘tis out and all things righted, God is forgotten and the firemen slighted.”


70. “You have to do something in your life that is honorable and not cowardly if you are to live in peace with yourself, and for the firefighter it is fire. ” – Larry Brown


71. “More often than not, a hero’s most epic battle is the one you never see; it’s the battle that goes on within him or herself. ”


72. “CARS ARE REALLY JUST BEER CANS AND POP CANS. THEY CRUSH DOWN ONTO THE VICTIM. TO GET THE VICTIM OUT, YOU DON’T NEED TO PUT THE POP CAN BACK TO WHERE IT WAS.”


73. “Firefighter appreciation isn’t just a once a year affair because firefighters are there for each of us every day. ” – Byron Pulsifer


74. “I wanted to do everything. I wanted to be a pilot. I wanted to be a secret agent. I wanted to be a fireman and a doctor, all that. So I related that through movies and stuff.” ~ Josh Holloway


75. “When a man becomes a fireman his greatest act of bravery has been accomplished. What he does after that is all in the line of work.” – Edward F. Croker


76. “If Prometheus was worthy of the wrath of heaven for kindling the first fire upon earth, how ought all the gods to honor the men who make it their professional business to put it out?” – John Godfrey Saxe


77. “Firefighters are indispensable foot soldiers here at home.” – Christopher Dodd


78. “Courage is fear holding on a minute longer. ”


79. “Firefighters are some of the most selfless public servants you will ever encounter.” – Denis Leary


80. “I have no ambition in this world but one, and that is to be a fireman. The position may, in the eyes of some, appear to be a lowly one; but we who know the work which the fireman has to do believe that his is a noble calling. Our proudest moment is to save lives. Under the impulse of such thoughts, the nobility of the occupation thrills us and stimulates us to deeds of daring, even of supreme sacrifice. ” – Edward F. Croker


81. “Firefighter required to perform all the necessary task in order to control an emergency situation.” – Dennis


82. “Have some sort of a private place to work in. Put up a sign to keep from being interrupted. Mine says: “Please, do not knock, do not say hello or goodbye, do not ask what’s for dinner, do not disturb me unless the police or firemen have to be called.”” ~ Judith Krantz


83. “There was really only one person who – and I remember to this day – he was a fireman, and he said, “You’ll never know what you’ll do when you’re in a fire.” Everyone else was like: “I don’t care; I would have saved my children; I could have done it. Even if I was asleep I would have woken up and saved my children.” But the fireman said, “You never know what’s going to happen unless you’re in there.”” ~ Elizabeth Gilbert


84. “Every firefighter knows that he is always susceptible to this type of tragedy. They go to work every day knowing that they are doing something so positive, that people really respect them and appreciate them. ”


85. “There is nobility in a job that deals with fire and extinguish it from then on, I believe that. ”


86. “It wasn’t good for my nerves, that kind of work – a fireman. I’ve got high blood pressure. I get upset easily. I don’t think that was a proper career alternative for me.” ~ Tom Waits


87. “This job isn’t for everybody. It takes someone special to be a firefighter.” – Glenn Corbett


88. “Remember, No Call is Routine”. Keith Powell, Chief, Taylor’s Bridge FD, Clinton, NC


89. “When fire is cried and danger is neigh,


90. “I remember asking an old salt one day why he carried two tools, had everything on (correctly) and had pockets full of sharpened, oiled and well modified tools including dog rope, whistle, chalk, cutter, pliers, knife, door chocks, shove tool etc.. He turned, pulled his Lucky Strike out in a cloud of smoke and said, ‘Kid, self-preservation is its own reward”. I never forgot that advice”. Bobby Halton, Editor, Fire Engineering Magazine


91. “THAT (TRUCK) HAS A HIGH CARBON STEEL FRAME. IT’S MADE TO TWIST AND TURN, OR ELSE IF IT DIDN’T IT WOULD BREAK. IF YOU GOT ENOUGH ANCHOR POINTS, YOU CAN GET A LOT MORE TWIST OUT OF THAT FRAME ON THAT TRUCK THEN YOU REALIZE.”


92. “Our department makes 1,120 calls every day. Do you know how many of those calls the public expects perfection on? 1,120. Nobody calls the Fire Department and says, ‘Send me two dumb-ass firemen in a pickup truck’. In three minutes they want five brain-surgeon, decathlon champions to come out and solve all their problems”. Chief John Eversole, Chicago Fire Department, circa 1995


93. “Firefighter is one of the few jobs kind enough to warn me away by containing two words I’m not interested in, unlike the deceptive bookkeeper. ”


94. “YOU’VE GOT CONTROL OF YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM IF YOU’VE GOT CONTROL OF YOUR BREATH.”


95. “My father was a police officer before he retired. One of my brothers is also a police officer, and I think they kind of expected I would do something along those lines, like become a fireman or something.” ~ Ryan Reynolds


96. “Necessity of action takes away the fear of the act, and makes bold resolution the favorite of fortune. ”


97. “Firefighting is a science and a passion. Firefighters do what they do because the love their work.” – Rev Dr Cynthia Huling Hummel


98. “Another benefit of being a firefighter is your sense of self-worth. You go out on a job, you eat some smoke, you take a little heat, and you get the great satisfaction of confronting the flames and defeating them. You know you’re doing a good job, and that’s a very valuable benefit.” – Dennis Smith


99. “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” – Joseph Campbell


100. “Like other kids wanted to become firemen or astronauts, I wanted to make people laugh.” ~ Steven Wright


101. “There were a lot of choices to make and I always picked artist. I never once picked doctor, lawyer, firemen or something like that. It was always artist.” ~ Maynard James Keenan


102. “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer. ” – Ralph Waldo Emerson


103. “But sound aloud the praises, and give the victor-crown


104. “One peculiarity of an astronaut’s job is that we do everything in public. Also, you don’t want to make a mistake. In the best case, it’s an embarrassment, in the worst, death. That’s also part of the training. They teach you to think like an astronaut, like they do with a pilot, a military man, a fireman. You dissociate in your mind the gravity of the consequences of your mistake.” ~ David Saint-Jacques


105. “There’s only 5 real jobs in the world. Teacher, fireman, policeman, doctor and somebody who is in the armed service. If you don’t have one of those 5 jobs, you shouldn’t take your life that serious.” ~ Charles Barkley


106. “Being a fireman, the whole neighborhood looks up to you. Being a good fireman, the other firefighters look up to you.” – Edward Allen Bernero


107. “What firefighters and people in our military and cops do is separate from what the rest of us do; basically these people say, ‘I’m going to protect all these strangers. ’” – Denis Colin Leary


108. “That’s the life, being a fireman. It sure beats being a ballplayer. I’d rather be a fireman”. – Ted Williams


109. “My heroes are those who risk their lives every day to protect our world and make it a better place – police, firefighters and members of our armed forces. ” – Sidney Sheldon


110. “Being a firefighter is hard. But, it is also rewarding. It feels good to help people when they are in trouble. ” ― Melissa A. Settle


111. “Fire is the best of servants, but what a master!” ~ Thomas Carlyle


112. “The funny thing about firemen is, night and day, they are always firemen. ”


113. “People are always asking me how is it that firefighters run into a burning building when everyone else is running out. Courage is the answer. ” – Chief Kennedy, Ladder 49


114. “It would be great if firefighters across the country had the guarantee that they would be making enough money to support their family right from the get-go, but that’s not the case. ”


115. “Hard times don’t create heroes. It is during the hard times when the ‘hero’ within us is revealed.” – Bob Riley


116. “I’m always embarrassed when people say that I’m courageous. Soldiers are courageous. Policemen are courageous. Firemen are courageous. I just have a thick hide and disregard what silly people say.” ~ Thomas Sowell


117. “Firefighters save hearts and homes.”


118. “Training is OUR way to make sure IT gets done correct”


119. “To me, there’s only 5 real jobs in America: Police Officers, Teachers, Firefighters, Doctors, and the Military Service. ” – Charles Barkely


120. “Firefighters go where they’re needed, sometimes ignoring the dangers even when no one is inside a burning building to be saved.” – Bill Dedman


121. “When tempted to fight fire with fire, remember that firefighters usually use water. ”


122. “WHEN YOU’RE OFF DUTY, BE OFF DUTY.”


123. “Being a firefighter is as close as you get to being a modern day soldier in your home country.” – Tom Dawson


124. “Firemen never die, they just burn forever in the hearts of the people whose lives they saved.” – Susan Diane Murphree


125. “Playing with fire will get you burnt. Playing with a firefighter will get you wet.”


126. “Good Firefighters will know their job. Great Firefighters will also know the job of the person above them as well as teach their job to the person below them. ” ― Bob Muszynski


127. “I am just an ordinary guy who has had extraordinary opportunities. Those opportunities were available because I was a volunteer firefighter.” Ron Roy, Div. Chief, Douglas County Fire District #2, Past Pres.WSFFA


128. “SO MANY PEOPLE DON’T SEE VICTIMS AS VICTIMS BECAUSE OF HOW THEY PERCEIVE A PROSTITUTE.”


129. “The fire service is a profession where enduring friendships triumph over conflicts; stunning victories trump tragic tales; and acts of selfless courage and heroism overshadow occasional incidents of incompetence or lack of discipline.” – Ellen Kirschman


130. “The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it


131. “My dad’s a firefighter, so I know what it’s like for policemen and firefighters to be on their own on Christmas Day.” – J.J. Watt


132. “They walked still farther and the girl said, “Is it true that long ago firemen put fires out instead of going to start them?” No. Houses have always been fireproof, take my word for it.” Strange. I heard once that a long time ago houses used to burn by accident and they needed firemen to stop the flames.” ~ Ray Bradbury


133. “In the heat of the battle you don’t remember very much. You don’t think very fast. You act by instinct, which is really training. So you’ve got to be trained for battle so that you will react exactly the way you did in training”. Admiral Arleigh Burke, USN


134. “I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” – Christopher Reeve


135. “DON’T CALL FOR WATER UNTIL YOU HAVE (THE LINE) FLAKED OUT HOW YOU LIKE IT.”


136. “I can think of no more stirring symbol of man’s humanity to man than a fire engine.” ~ Kurt Vonnegut


137. “Firemen have the coolest toys ever!” ~ Adam Savage


138. “Someday I will be a firefighter that my family will be proud of, I swear it on my father’s name. ”


139. “THEY HAVE SHOWN THAT WHEN YOU GIVE YOURSELF MENTAL MESSAGES, YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM GOES FROM THE THREAT RESPONSE, WHERE YOU WANT TO RIP OFF YOUR MASK AND GET THE HELL OUT OF THERE, TO THE CHALLENGE RESPONSE, WHERE YOUR BODY IS LIKE, ‘F!@K YA, LETS DO THIS’. ALL BECAUSE OF WHAT YOU SAY TO YOURSELF IN YOUR BRAIN.”


140. “A firefighter decides your fate in the fire. ”


141. “The thin red line represents our nation’s brave full time and volunteer firefighters. The red symbolizes that last bit of strength and courage the individual firefighter must gather in order to battle nature’s fiercest elements and save those who cannot save themselves. The surrounding black embodies their fallen comrades.”


142. “I decided I would go to Chicago and try my luck as a writer after those eight months as a fireman.” ~ Carl Sandburg


143. “Deliberate violence is more to be quenched than a fire.” – Heraclitus


144. “WEBBING IS GOING TO ELONGATE. CHAIN IS NOT. SO IF I THROW CHAIN IN AND I RATCHET IT DOWN TO CAPTURE THAT SUSPENSION, I KNOW IT’S NOT GOING ANYWHERE.”


145. “A firefighter starts in the morning because an emergency knows no time and can happen without warning.”


146. “You know you’re a firefighter when you really think that rusty old hydrant looks good in the garden. ”


147. “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson


148. “Firemen are going to get killed. When they join the department they face that fact. When a man becomes a fireman his greatest act of bravery has been accomplished. What he does after that is all in the line of work. They were not thinking of getting killed when they went where death lurked. They went there to put the fire out, and got killed. Firefighters do not regard themselves as heroes because they do what the business requires. ”


149. “What is a human-like droid that operates from a place of free will and has been designed to have a soul? That’s fascinating stuff that you just can’t quite comprehend quickly. It’s not like playing a fireman with a wife and kid. You can gauge where that’s going to go and what’s going to happen, and you can talk to other people who have done it.” ~ Michael Ealy


150. “Becoming fearless isn’t the point. That’s impossible. It’s learning how to control your fear, & how to be free from it, that’s the point. The necessity of action takes away the fear of the act and makes bold resolution the favorite of fortune.” – Francis Quarles


151. “All men are created equal, then a few become firemen. ”


152. “All women are not created equal – only the finest become firefighters.”


153. “When a man becomes a fireman his greatest act of bravery has been accomplished. What he does after that is all in the line of work.” – Edward Croker


154. “Courage isn’t that you can see what lies ahead; courage means you will advance not knowing but doing at all costs”. – Byron Pulsifer


155. “Seems to me the basic conflict between men and women, sexually, is that men are like firemen. To men, sex is an emergency, and no matter what we’re doing we can be ready in two minutes. Women, on the other hand, are like fire. They’re very exciting, but the conditions have to be exactly right for it to occur.” ~ Jerry Seinfeld


156. ‘”STRIKE” PERPENDICULARLY INCASE YOU MISS, BUT TRY NOT TO MISS.’


157. “If crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fire, what do freedom fighters fight?” – George Carlin


158. “Hard times don’t create heroes. It is during the hard times when the ‘hero’ within us is revealed. ” – Bob Riley


159. “You know you’re a firefighter when you really think that rusty old hydrant looks good in the garden.”


160. “My man risks his life to save strangers. Just imagine what he would do to protect me.”


161. “Keep calm I’m a firefighter’s girlfriend.”


162. “The closest fires were near enough for us to hear the crackling flames and the yells of firemen. Little fires grew into big ones even as we watched. Big ones died down under the firemen’s valor only to break out again later.” ~ Ernie Pyle


163. “START AT THE TOP AND WRAP DOWN. IF I START AT THE BOTTOM AND WRAP UP, (THE ROPE) BINDS ON ITSELF BECAUSE IT COMES OVER.”


164. “The hero is the man who lets no obstacle prevent him from pursuing the values he has chosen. ”


165. “ADD A HALLIGAN TO THE BUTT SPUR END SO THAT IT COUNTERBALANCES THE HOOKS”


166. “I was always drawn to performing, but I never thought I could. I have no idea what I wanted to do outside of the old cowboy-or-fireman. When I was in college, I got serious about acting. I started examining history and then everything related to the theater. History, art, all the other studies, if I could link them into the theater, then it became alive for me. It just opened up my eyes.” ~ Billy Crystal


167. “All men were created equal, then a few become firemen. ” – Unknown


168. “You can’t be afraid to put out a fire if you’re a fireman. You can’t be afraid to be a police officer and carry a gun if you’re afraid to get up and go out there. So you’ve got to put that fear to the side and go out in faith to overcome that.” ~ Duane Chapman


169. “In fire, you can plan everything out to the minute, and a minute before that, everything changes.” – Dan Felix


170. “The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it.” – Thucydides


171. “YOU WANT TO DO DIAGONAL CUTS ON YOUR SEATBELTS. IF YOU DON’T CUT SEATBELTS WHEN YOU’RE DOING THE BLOWOUT OR THE LAYDOWN, THEY WILL HANG YOU UP EVERY TIME.”


172. “In fire, you can plan everything out to the minute, and a minute before that, everything changes. ” – Dan Felix


173. “Our firefighters are not just called to house fires. They respond to sorts of rescue situation: motor vehicle accidents, swimming and boating accidents, chemical leaks and gas leaks, just to name a few.” – Rev Dr Cynthia Huling Hummel


174. “A good firefighter knows how, an educated firefighter knows why.”


175. “YOUR TIME UNDERNEATH THIS HELMET IS LIMITED BUT YOUR TIME AS A SERVANT AND AS A GOOD HUMAN BEING IS NOT.”


176. “The most tangible of all visible mysteries – fire.” – Leigh Hunt


177. “If firefighting was easy cops what do it.”


178. “Firemen never die, they just burn forever in the hearts of the people whose lives they saved. ”


179. “The role of a firefighter in today’s society – be it urban, rural, natural environment, volunteer, career, industrial, defense force, aviation, motorsport, or other is one of dedication, commitment, and sacrifice – no matter what country we reside and work in. In the fire service, we fight together against one common enemy – fire – no matter what country we come from, what uniform we wear or what language we speak.” – Lt JJ Edmondson


180. “You have to do something in your life that is honorable and not cowardly if you are to live in peace with yourself, and for the firefighter it is fire.” – Larry Brown


181. “Firefighters save more than homes. They save hearts, memories and dreams.”


182. “Listen up: “Everything you say, do, wear and post – reflects on you as an individual, your fire department, and the fire service at large! …and on me too.” Act accordingly.”


183. “Hard times don’t create heroes, it is during the hard times the ‘hero’ within us id revealed.” – Bob Riley


184. “YOU GET THEM OUT OF THAT ATMOSPHERE AS QUICK AS POSSIBLE AND SOMETIMES THAT IS THE WINDOW. YOU NEED TO HAVE THAT PLAN AVAILABLE FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.”


185. “In the context of September 11, there were so many that lost their lives that – how do you single out one person? There were so many acts of heroism that day from so many people, whether it be firemen and police officers in New York and our agents also.” ~ Robert Mueller


186. “The sun burnt every day. It burnt time.” ~ Ray Bradbury


187. “Firefighters don’t go on strike.” – Denis Leary


188. “Once you have a firefighter in your family, your family and the families from his crew become one big extended family.” – Denis Leary


189. “A SPACE CONTAINING MORE THAN 23.5% OF OXYGEN IS ENRICHED AND ENHANCES COMBUSTIBLE FLAMMABILITY”


190. “My buddies wanted to be firemen, farmers or policemen, something like that. Not me, I just wanted to steal people’s money!” ~ John Dillinger


191. “The special ops guys and the firefighters around the world have this great phrase. They say, ‘Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast,’ and that is true. Everything I’ve accomplished in my life has been because of that attitude. ” – Jeff Bezos


192. “People are always asking me how is it that firefighters run into a burning building when everyone else is running out. Courage is the answer.” – Lewis Colick


193. “In fire, you can plan everything out to the minute, and a minute before that, everything changes. ”


194. “Every firefighter knows that he is always susceptible to this type of tragedy. They go to work every day knowing that they are doing something so positive, that people really respect them and appreciate them. ” – Thomas Von Essen


195. “People are always asking me how it is that firefighters run into a burning building when everyone else is running out. Courage is the answer. ” – Chief Kennedy


196. “As the member of a firefighter family myself, supporting the widowed families of rescue workers is an important, personal cause of mine. ” – Mark Sanchez


197. “The funny thing about firemen is, night and day, they are always firemen.” – Gregory Widen


198. “Most people think that an enlightened Buddhist Teacher is a fireman; His job is to put the fire out so that you can live in your home safely. But seeker beware! A fully enlightened Buddhist teacher is an arsonist! His job is to set your spirit on fire…by feeding the flames of your soul with love.” ~ Frederick Lenz


199. “And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky room, Jim’s Aunt, Miss. Prothero came downstairs and peered in at them. Jim and I waited, very quietly, to hear what she would say to them. She said the right thing, always. She looked at the three tall firemen in their shining helmets, standing among the smoke and cinders and dissolving snowballs, and she said, “Would you like anything to read?” ~ Dylan Thomas


200. “The worst mistake you can make on the fire ground is failing to recognize that plan A is not working”. retired Battalion Chief Darwin Chenault. Portales Fire Department, Portales NM


201. “The satisfaction of purchasing quality equipment will stay with you long after the after-glow of a “good deal” has faded”. All contributed by Chief Carle Bishop Clermont Fire Department, Clermont, FL


202. “Successful training if a mix of tradition, real world skills, and a progressive arena for failure”,


203. “A hero has faced it all: he need not be undefeated, but he must be undaunted. ” – Andrew Bernstein


204. “Our firefighters are our last line of defense, baby. ”


205. “Firefighters in every town are special because they are willing to give their time and energy to help their neighbors, no matter who these neighbors might be.” – Brian Rogers


206. “THE KING RING IS THE RING YOU WANT TO ATTACH TOO IF YOU CAN. IT’S GONNA PROVIDE THE MOST STRENGTH THAT WE CAN HAVE.”


207. “A firefighter’s prayer: Lord, prepare me for the work that you have chosen me to do; In every task before me, may I bring honour to You, and when the moment comes that I must face the fire, may following and serving You still be my true desire.”


208. “You’re not like the others. I’ve seen a few; I know. When I talk, you look at me. When I said something about the moon, you looked at the moon, last night. The others would never do that. The others would walk off and leave me talking. Or threaten me. No one has time any more for anyone else. You’re one of the few who put up with me. That’s why I think it’s so strange you’re a fireman, it just doesn’t seem right for you, somehow.” ~ Ray Bradbury


209. “Professionalism is an attitude not a job status”


210. “You may not have saved a lot of money in your life, but if you have saved a lot of heartache for other folks, you are a pretty rich man. ” ― Seth Parker


211. ‘TAKE THE NOZZLE. ADVANCE AND PIN THE HOSE TO THE GROUND SO YOU DON’T LOSE CONTROL OF IT. THEN USING YOUR BIG MUSCLES, PULL IT UP THE STAIRS.’


212. “Being a firefighter is as close as you get to being a modern-day soldier in your home country.” – Tom Dawson


213. “As the member of a firefighter family myself, supporting the widowed families of rescue workers is an important, personal cause of mine.” – Mark Sanchez


214. “This job isn’t for everybody. It takes someone special to be a firefighter. ” ― Glenn Corbett


215. “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer. ”


216. “The hero is commonly the simplest and obscurest of men.” ~ Henry David Thoreau


217. “But aloud the praises, and give the victor-crown. To our noble hearted Firemen, who fear not danger’s frown. ” – Fredric G. W. Fenn


218. “Women love firefighters so much because it’s like a knight in shining armor kind of thing. ” ― Taylor Kinney


219. “Train for proficiency, not for hours”


220. “There are times when I feel over-rewarded for what I do for a living, especially when I compare what I can earn to what my brother earns as a firefighter. ” ― Kate Thornton


221. “There are two things we protect, our community and ourselves! You can’t do one without the other”. Contributed by Robert Kiser, Chief, De Pere FR, De Pere, WI


222. “You have to do something in your life that is honorable and not cowardly. If you are to live in peace with yourself, and for the firefighter it is fire.”


223. “Art and the triumph of the human spirit – the two combined thrill me. It’s the “Braveheart” moment, the stuff Joseph Campbell talks about, “the heroes journey,” a beautiful documentary on a poignant topic, the fireman saving a kitten from a burning building. It’s the combo of heroism and kindness against the odds or even good reason. It implies immortality because it is the domain of the soul. That evidence of the spirit of life is what makes me get out of bed in the morning.” ~ Kristin Bauer van Straten


224. “I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. ”


225. “As is true in sports, I’d say that you can have the best ball team (fire department) in the world with the best-trained players (firefighters), but without excellent, informed, and courageous coaches (chiefs), we will continue to lose”. Billy Goldfeder, IAFC Director, Safety, Health and Survival Section


226. “They were involved in a firefight and felt they were surrounded. Whether they escaped from that and were fleeing and went in the wrong direction, we don’t know. ” ― Hugh Shelton


227. “When a black Jacksonian looks about his home community, he sees a city of over 150,000, of which 40% is Negro, in which there is not a single Negro policeman or policewoman, school crossing guard, or fireman.” ~ Medgar Evers


228. ‘I can’t breathe’: Patient dies after 5 Calif. FF-medics violate policy 2


229. “What am I supposed to tell your mother?”


230. “I’m like a fireman. When I go out on a call, I want to put out a big fire, I don’t want to put out a fire in a dumpster.” ~ Harrison Ford


231. “As a member of a firefighter family myself, supporting the widowed families of rescue workers is an important, personal cause of mine.” – Mark Sanchez


232. “Firemen never know what they will encounter on each call but proceed with the same level of commitment and service.” – Byron Pulsifer


233. “I am not happy until you are unhappy!”


234. “MAKE SURE OUR EXTRICATION IS PATIENT DRIVEN AND NOT EGO DRIVEN.”


235. “Firefighters are always students; learning is required till retirement. ”


236. “Man is the only creature that dares to light a fire and live with it. The reason? Because he alone has learned how to put it out.” – Henry Jackson Vandyke Jr.


237. “Firefighting is all about *ss – busting ours to save yours.”


238. “Ron Atkinson was a firefighter. He came in and he stabled the club. ” ― Bobby Gould


239. “You can’t help anyone if you never get there” not sure about this one either


240. “If you think it’s tough being a firefighter, try being a firefighter’s wife.”


241. “Man is the only creature that dares to light a fire and live with it. The reason? Because he alone has learned to put it out.” – H.J Vandyke


242. “Firemen never know what they will encounter on each call but proceed with the same level of commitment and service. ”


243. “Train for proficiency, under realistic conditions, for best preparation. ”


244. “The boundary between expert and amateur was an imposed social-cultural “protection” which actually exposed a number of women to a fatal disease, because decaying matter, as the fireman said of fire (cited in the book’s final piece, “Torch Song”) “ain’t got no rules on it.”” ~ Laura Mullen


245. “With better gear, firefighters no longer surround and drown a fire – they go in.” – Bill Dedman


246. “Nothing cries out for compassion, concern, and danger as a fire engine screams by carrying firefighters ready to do battle without flinching from any demand. ” – Byron Pulsifer


247. “The best thing an old firefighter can teach a young firefighter is how to be an old firefighter!”


248. “Delaware’s firefighters put their lives in jeopardy every day in an effort to keep families safe. ” ― Thomas Carper


249. “But sound aloud the praises, and give the victor-crown to our noble-hearted Firemen, who fear not danger’s frown. ” – Frederic G. W. Fenn


250. “But sound aloud the praises, and give the victor-crown to our noble-hearted Firemen, who fear not danger’s frown.” – Frederic G.W. Fenn


251. “If Prometheus was worthy of the wrath of heaven for kindling the first fire upon earth, how ought all the gods honor the men who make it their professional business to put it out?” ~ John Godfrey Saxe


252. “The funny thing about firemen is, night and day, they are always firemen. ” – Gregory Widen


253. “Fortune is with the brave one. ”


254. “Real heroes are men who fall and fail and are flawed, but win out in the end because they’ve stayed true to their ideals and beliefs and commitments. ”


255. “IF WE ANCHOR THIS (ROPE) RIGHT WHERE THE HOSE IS COMING OFF THE ENGINE, I KNOW THAT IF I REACHED THE END OF MY ROPE, I SHOULD BE CLOSE TO THE NOZZLE. I CAN SWEEP THAT AREA FOR THE NOZZLE OR THE MEN.”


256. “I always wanted to be a fireman, a cop, an Indian chief, a doctor, a lawyer. I always wanted to be all these things, so I am drawn to these kinds of characters.” ~ Morgan Freeman


257. “The innovative leader has to be an arsonist and a firefighter.” – Paul Sloane


258. “When life is suddenly more serious more of the time, there is also more need for it to be fun at least some of the time. That’s why my family will be at a college football game this weekend. We need it. And deserve it, too. Not like a New York fireman deserves it. Or a medic at the Pentagon. But enough.” ~ Thomas Boswell ,


259. “Being a firefighter is as close as you get to being a modern day soldier in your home country. ” – Tom Dawson


260. “The hero is the man who lets no obstacle prevent him from pursuing the values he has chosen. ” – Andrew Bernstein


261. “Planning for emergencies: If you plan or train for what has already happened, you are behind the power curve. If you plan or train for what will not happen, you are behind the power curve. If you plan or train for what, in your wildest imagination, could ‘never happen’ you will be ready when it does”. Jim Taylor Captain, Cal Fire (Retired)


262. Firefighters go where they're needed, sometimes ignoring the dangers even when no one is inside a burning building to be saved.


263. “Firefighting – one of the few professions left that still makes house calls.” – Unknown


264. “As a rookie firefighter, you must understand from the moment you walk into the firehouse that you create your own legacy.” – Glenn Corbett


265. “The child, in danger of the fire, just clings to the fireman and trusts to him alone. She raises no question about the strength of his limbs to carry her, or the zeal of his heart to rescue her, but she clings. The heat is terrible, the smoke is blinding, but she clings; and her deliverer quickly bears her to safety. In the same childlike confidence cling to Jesus, who can and will bear you out of danger from the flames of sin.” ~ Charles Spurgeon


266. “I have no ambition in this world but one, and that is to be a fireman. The position may, in the eyes of some, appear to be a lowly one; but we who know the work which the fireman has to do believe that his is a noble calling. Our proudest moment is to save lives. Under the impulse of such thoughts, the nobility of the occupation thrills us and stimulates us to deeds of daring, even of supreme sacrifice. ”


267. “True courage is being afraid, and going ahead and doing your job anyhow. That's what courage is


268. “Aspire rather be a hero than merely appear one.’” – Baltasar Gracian


269. “Fire fighting is a low-frequency, high-risk business. That’s why they train and trian in these simulated environments.” – Ellen Kirschman


270. “When everyone else is trying to run out of a burning building, the firefighters are the ones running into it to save their people trapped inside.” – Brian Rogers


271. “Bravery is being the only one who knows you’re afraid.” – Franklin P. Jones


272. “You were born with the ability to change someone’s life don’t ever waste it.”


273. ‘Attack every situation’: Vince Bettinazzi shares shift expectations


274. “The Black public-sector middle-class teachers, policeman, firemen, and post office workers, those jobs have been on the decline but there hasn’t been a corresponding increase in the private sector. What is especially painful is government policy bailed out the banks without making them make reinvestments for rebuilding. The result is 53-million Americans are food insecure, 50-million Americans are in poverty, 44 million are on food stamps, 26 million are looking for a job.” ~ Jesse Jackson


275. “How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!” ~ Maya Angelou


276. “ You cannot run your firehouse like a 3-ring circus and then the tones go off and expect it to operate like the Marine Corps. It isn’t gonna work”. Billy Goldfeder, IAFC Director, Safety, Health and Survival Section


277. “It takes a lot of sacrifice to become a firefighter. ”


278. “Out of this nettle – danger – we pluck this flower – safety.” ~ William Shakespeare


279. “I never met anybody in my life who says, I want to be a critic. People want to be a fireman, poet, novelist.” ~ Leslie Fiedler


280. “No Matter How You Slice It, Big Fire Takes Big Water…” A.C. Duane Banzet


281. “Sometimes a fireman will go to great strenuous lengths to save a raccoon that’s stuck in a drainpipe and then go out on the weekend and kill several of them for amusement.” ~ George Carlin


282. “Firefighters also fill a variety of roles that help to keep the community safe.” – Brian Rogers


283. “Hard times don’t create heroes. It is during the hard times when the ‘hero’ within us is revealed. ”


284. “Our firefighters are our last line of defense, baby.” – Jack Scalia


285. “What firefighters and people in our military and cops do is separate from what the rest of us do; basically these people say, ‘I’m going to protect all these strangers.’” – Denis Colin Leary


286. “When sinners are careless and stupid, and sinking into hell unconcerned, it is time the church should bestir themselves. It is as much the duty of the church to awake, as it is for the firemen to awake when a fire breaks out in the night in a great city.” ~ Charles Grandison Finney


287. “Keep calm and love a wildland firefighter.”


288. “I’m very proud of being Italian-American, but people don’t realize that the mafia is just this aberration. The real community is built on the working man, the guy who’s the cop, the fireman, the truck driver, the bus driver.” ~ Chazz Palminteri


289. “Beware of the firefighter who tells you he has survived numerous "real" flashovers and doesn't act scared”. Billy Goldfeder, IAFC Director, Safety, Health and Survival Section


290. “Courage isn’t that you can see what lies ahead; courage means you will advance not knowing but doing at all costs”. –Byron Pulsifer


291. “Man is the only creature that dares to light a fire and live with it. The reason? Because he alone has learned to put it out. ” – H. J. Vandyke


292. “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself. ” – Joseph Campbell


293. “You might be a firefighter if your kids are afraid to get into water fights with you.”


294. “Rank is about what is said, Leadership is about what is done.”


295. “When 9/11 happened, 12 of our neighborhood firemen were killed. I looked around at the country that had adopted me and I became an American.” ~ Iman Abdulmajid


296. “A hero has faced it all: he need not be undefeated, but he must be undaunted. ”


297. “Firefighters are hot stuff.”


298. “Firefighters are indispensable foot soldiers here at home. ” – Christopher Dodd


299. “When fire is cried and danger is neigh, ‘God and the fireman’ is the people’s cry; but when ‘tis out and all things righted, God is forgotten and the firemen slighted. ” – Unknown


300. “There are no new lessons to be learned from this fire; only old lessons that tragically went unheeded.” – Percy Bugbee


301. “My dad’s a firefighter, so I know what it’s like for policemen and firefighters to be on their own on Christmas Day. ”


302. “Hug a firefighter and feel warm all over.”


303. ‘It’s an honor’: Victor Stagnaro on his new role as NFFF CEO


304. “I can think of no more stirring symbol of man 's humanity to man than a fire truck. ”


305. “Train for proficiency, not for hours. ”


306. “Train for proficiency, under realistic conditions, for best preparation”


307. “Firefighters are some of the most selfless public servants you will ever encounter. ” – Denis Leary


308. “Becoming fearless isn’t the point. That’s impossible. It’s learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it, that’s the point. ”


309. “Being a firefighter is hard. But, it is also rewarding. It feels good to help people when they are in trouble.” – Melissa A. Settle


310. “How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!” – Maya Angelou


311. “Faith in God, trust in training.”


312. “The innovative leader has to be an arsonist and a firefighter. ” ― Paul Sloane


313. “What firefighters and people in our military and cops do is separate from what the rest of us do; basically these people say, ‘I’m going to protect all these strangers.” – Denis Colin Leary


314. “Pass me another nozzle, this one melted”. Contributed by Pat Schuller, Scottsdale FD


315. “I played in front of every conceivable audience you could face: an all-black audience, all-white, firemen’s fairs, policemen’s balls, in front of supermarkets, bar mitzvahs, weddings, drive-in theaters. I’d seen it all before I ever walked into a recording studio.” ~ Bruce Springsteen


316. ‘THE WEIGHT OF THE COUPLING WILL SUCK THIS WHOLE LINE DOWN SO WE’VE GOT TO TIE THIS OFF. WE’RE ALWAYS GONNA TIE IT OFF BELOW THE COUPLING.’


317. “I think we must cling to the hope that we can see in the great heroism, the bravery of the firemen and policemen, and the outpouring of caring and concern that has come pouring in from around the world.” ~ Jane Goodall


318. “Training doesn’t cost….It PAYS!!!!!”


319. “BEWARE OF AIRBAG CYLINDERS.”


320. “Brotherhood, It’s the unspoken “I got you back”.”


321. “Every firefighter knows that he is always susceptible to this type of tragedy. They go to work every day knowing that they are doing something so positive, that people really respect them and appreciate them.” – Thomas Von Essen


322. “I can think of no more stirring symbol of man’s humanity to man than a fire engine. ” – Kurt Vonnegut


323. “The only negative thing is that I got into acting thinking, “One day I’ll be a cowboy, the next day I’ll be an astronaut. Maybe I’ll be a fireman.” It seems that I’m destined to play smart people in suits. I’d rather have that than no niche.” ~ Joshua Malina


324. “The hero is the man who lets no obstacle prevent him from pursuing the values he has chosen.” – Andrew Bernstein


325. “Training — Your success is the only thing that is mandatory”.


326. “When the bell rang, a firefighter was expected to stop everything to help others. ” ― Glenn Corbett


327. “GIVE OF OURSELVES TO OTHERS THE GREATEST GIFT WE COULD EVER GIVE.”


328. “THINK OF A RATCHET AS A GEAR SHIFT”


329. “To me, there’s only 5 real jobs in America: Police Officers, Teachers, Firefighters, Doctors, and the Military Service.” – Charles Barkely


330. “Volunteer firefighter. I do it for free.”


331. A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.


332. “You might be a firefighter if the microwave goes off and you run out of the house thinking it was your pager.”


333. “Our firefighters are our last line of defense, baby. ” – Jack Scalia


334. “The will to live that possesses us to create medicine, to become firefighters or teachers, is the same will to live that is woven into all living beings. ” ― Ian Somerhalder


335. “Anytime I get to help the firefighters, I will. I’m real lucky to be in a position to help. ”


336. “The only fire he can’t put out is the one he started in my heart.”


337. “TRY BEFORE YOU PRY.”


338. “He is the fire in my heart, the superhero in my life, the one I will always love, the one who protects me at night, the one who will always be there. He is my one and only, He is my firefighter.”


339. “I want to play a fireman and a spy. I want to learn special effects.” ~ Jackie Chan


340. “Training — gives everyone a chance for success”


341. “Training is our way to make sure it gets done correct. ”


342. “Be Careful-Don’t become part of the problem” (not sure where I heard this first)


343. “Firemen: your worst day is our everyday. ”


344. “Firefighters don’t go on strike. ” ― Denis Leary


345. “Delaware’s firefighters put their lives in jeopardy every day in an effort to keep families safe.” – Thomas Carper


346. “Bravery is being the only one who knows you’re afraid. ” – Franklin P. Jones


347. “Fire fighters worldwide regard themselves as a brotherhood. The fire service is built on traditions of service to the community and traditions of mutual support and hospitality to each other.” – Ellen Kirschman


348. “Bravery is not the absence of fear but action in the face of fear.”


349. “To become a firefighter is one of the greatest gifts you can give to your neighbors. Few civilians appreciate the many sacrifices made or the toll it takes on the body, mind, and spirit.


350. “Firefighting – one of the few professions left that still makes house calls.”


351. “The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it. ” – Thucydides


352. “My heroes are those who risk their lives every day to protect our world and make it a better place - police, firefighters and members of our armed forces. ”


353. “If your goal is to produce firefighters and rescue workers, you have to produce people willing to enter burning buildings. ” ― Brian D. McLaren


354. “Some people run from problems. Others run to them. We call them heroes. Thank you firefighters.”


355. “It’s better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it!” – Les Paul Caid, Chief, Rio Rico Fire District, Rio Rico, AZ


356. “When I was a fireman I was in a lot of burning buildings. It was a great job, the only job I ever had that compares with the thrill of acting.” ~ Steve Buscemi


357. “Firefighters...you joined to serve... so don't try to "customize" the FD to meet YOUR personal needs...respond quickly every time the tones go off and participate in training regularly...and remember "Ask NOT what your fire department can do for you...ask what YOU can do for your fire department"....(with apologies to JFK). Billy Goldfeder, IAFC Director, Safety, Health and Survival Section


358. “Becoming fearless isn’t the point. That’s impossible. It’s learning how to control your fear, & how to be free from it, that’s the point. Necessity of action takes away the fear of the act, and makes bold resolution the favorite of fortune. ” – Francis Quarles


359. “Firefighters are essential to the safety and security of our local communities. We owe it to these men and women to provide them with better training and equipment so they can do their jobs more effectively and safety.” – Carl Levin


360. “Athletes and musicians make astronomical amounts of money. People get paid $100 million to throw a baseball! Shouldn’t we all take less and pass some of that money onto others? Think about firefighters, teachers and policemen. We should celebrate people that are intellectually smart and trying to make this world a better place. ”


361. “Firemen never die, they just burn forever in the hearts of the people whose lives they saved. ” – Susan Diane Murphree


362. “Nothing cries out for compassion, concern, and danger as a fire engine screams by carrying firefighters ready to do battle without flinching from any demand.” – Byron Pulsifer


363. ‘IF YOU FEEL THAT 50 FOOT COUPLING IN YOUR HAND, YOU SHOULD BE THE FIFTH FLOOR. IF YOU’RE AT THE THIRD FLOOR AND HERE’S THE COUPLING, YOU HAVE A PILE ON THE GROUND, SO DON’T LET MORE FLAKE OFF YOUR SHOULDERS AS YOU WALK UP.’


364. “I’m not just daddy’s little girl. I’m a firefighter’s daughter.”


365. “I’ve never wanted to be a fireman, in my life. I’ve never really wanted to grow up and be anything other than a film director.” ~ David Gordon Green


366. “It’s an interesting thing to play the heroes of our society, like cops and firefighters. They’re the basic heroes that, as little boys and little girls, you look up to as the first heroes of your small, specific community. ”


367. “I keep a pretty tight grip on my schedule and I compare it a lot to a fireman’s – a four-on then four-off type of deal.” ~ Aaron Watson


368. “When a man becomes a fireman his greatest act of bravery has been accomplished. What he does after that is all in the line of work. ”


369. “Not to sound rude, but [acting] is stupid. Everybody’s like “How can you remain with a level head?”. And I’m like “Why would I ever get cocky? I’m not saving anybody’s life. There are doctors who save lives and firemen who run into burning buildings. I’m making movies. It’s stupid.”” ~ Jennifer Lawrence


370. “All men were created equal, then a few become firemen.” – Unknown


371. “All men were created equal, then a few become firemen.”


372. “The Goal of Education is Understanding; the Goal of Training is Performance”


373. “You’re not like the others. I’ve seen a few; I know. When I talk, you look at me. When I said something about the moon, you looked at the moon.” ~ Ray Bradbury


374. “Being a firefighter is as close as you can get to being a modern-day soldier in your home country


375. “It’s an interesting thing to play the heroes of our society, like cops and firefighters. They’re the basic heroes that, as little boys and little girls, you look up to as the first heroes of your small, specific community. ” – Omari Hardwick


376. “Officers: Your primary job (when riding the front seat) is proper size up, quick report and appropriate initial leadership/tactics....it is NOT just to blow the sirens, horns and scream on the radio.... the safety of your crew is #1...take "the front seat" seriously”. Billy Goldfeder, IAFC Director, Safety, Health and Survival Section


377. “Firefighters are always students, learning is required till retirement”


378. “Train the way you play. ”


379. “Beware of the firefighter who "doesn't need any more training". Billy Goldfeder, IAFC Director, Safety, Health and Survival Section


380. “Firefighter is one of the few jobs kind enough to warn me away by containing two words I’m not interested in, unlike the deceptive bookkeeper. ” – Joel Stein


381. ‘God and the firemen’ are the people’s cry;


382. “Women love firefighters so much because it’s like a knight in shining armor kind of a thing.” – Taylor Kinney


383. “You have to do something in your life that is honorable and not cowardly if you are to live in peace with yourself, and for the firefighter, it is fire.” – Larry Brown


384. “Firefighting – one of the few professions left that still makes house calls. ” – Unknown


385. “People are always asking me how is it that firefighters run into a burning building when everyone else is running out. Courage is the answer.” – Chief Kennedy


386. “My son still plays with firetrucks.”


387. ‘A QUARTER OF THE LENGTH OF THE LADDER IS WHERE YOU WANT TO BE FROM THE BUILDING FOR PROPER CLIMBING ANGLE.’


388. “To me, there are only 5 real jobs in America: Police Officers, Teachers, Firefighters, Doctors, and the Military Service.” – Charles Barkley


389. “Firefighters are essential to the safety and security of our local communities. We owe it to these men and women to provide them with better training and equipment so they can do their jobs more effectively and safely. ” ― Carl Levin


390. “Firefighters also fill a variety of roles that help to keep the community safe. ” ― Brian Rogers


391. “WHEN IN DOUBT, CHEAT OUT”


392. “WHEN YOU SET UP ON A REAL BUILDING, DON’T JUST SET IT UP, PULL IT BACK DOWN AND LEAVE. SET IT UP, CLIMB UP THERE AND LOOK AT THE ACTUAL TRANSITION”


393. “I became a firefighter because I wanted to save people. But I should have been more specific. I should have named names. ” ― Jodi Picoult


394. “That’s the life, being a fireman. It sure beats being a ballplayer. I’d rather be a fireman.” – Ted Williams, Boston Red Sox


395. “Real heroes are men who fall and fail and are flawed, but win out in the end because they’ve stayed true to their ideals and beliefs and commitments. ” – Kevin Costner


396. “I am just another fireman because the story focuses on Joaquin Phoenix’s character, but I play Joaquin’s close friend and I get burned up a little bit, but I don’t die.” ~ Morris Chestnut


397. “Firefighter is one of the few jobs kind enough to warn me away by containing two words I’m not interested in, unlike the deceptive bookkeeper.” – Joel Stein


398. “Brave people are the firemen who run into the burning building. That’s brave.” ~ Elizabeth Edwards


399. “More often than not, a hero’s most epic battle is the one you never see; it’s the battle that goes on within him or herself” – Kevin Smith


400. “Courage is fear holding on a minute longer.” – General George Patton

63 views0 comments
bottom of page