Firefighter - 2020 - 24

INDUSTRY

24

By Edward J Maerkl M.S.

WHY I BECAME A

PEER
My story of becoming a trained Fire Department PEER Supporter all started
with Billy. I met Billy some 23 years ago. He was one of the older
guys, but kept physically fit for the job; running to and from work
several miles every shift. One summer, Billy had an unimaginable
accident on a call and was paralyzed. Just like that his life
was changed forever.
Billy had every firefighting certificate you could
think of and years of experience to go along
with them, but after the accident, he had
trouble getting a job because he didn't
have a college degree. Eventually, when
things started moving in a positive
direction for him, he gave me a piece
of advice. He said "whatever you do
in firefighting, make sure you find
something else you can do because
it can all be gone in a second. Find
something you can do if God forbid
you are stuck in a wheelchair like
me. Have a backup plan."
That advice has stayed with me
for many years of my life, through
work, a child, a divorce, a change
of agencies, and remarriage.
Finally, after almost a decade, I
determined what my back up
plan should be and enrolled
in college. I chose a degree



Firefighter - 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Firefighter - 2020

Contents
Firefighter - 2020 - Cover1
Firefighter - 2020 - Cover2
Firefighter - 2020 - Contents
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