About Firefighter Joy
Firefighter Rebecca Joy
I grew up in a west Phoenix neighborhood, my backyard directly under the shadow of Phoenix Fire Station 25’s hose tower.
Even though we never actually saw firefighters on the tower, we thought they used it to keep watch over the neighborhood, like a forest fire observation tower. We were even more convinced of this when, one morning before daylight, firefighters jumped over a neighbor’s fence and pulled a toddler out of a swimming pool.
There’s most likely a correlation between our belief that those firefighters watched over us and the peaceful eighteen years we spent in a house that was never locked. It’s probably just as well that we didn’t know until later that the tower served only as a place to dry out fire hoses.
When my brother and I became career firefighters, our mother loved to listen to our adventures, amazing tales about life on the streets and the antics of fellow firefighters. She asked, “Wouldn’t it be fun to collect stories from firefighters around the city?”
I agreed.
But I’ve discovered that collecting these stories – some funny, some heartbreaking, some inspring – was only half the fun. The best part is sharing them with you!
I hope you enjoy them, and please be sure to comment on anything that affects, impresses, disturbs, touches, or grabs you. We’d love to hear from you!
Sincerely,
Rebecca
aka Firefighter Joy