HARRY R. CARTER, Ph.D., MIFireE

One of my favorite analogies deals with the concept of selfish people. I can recall using the following analogy on a number of occasions. After dealing with a person who appeared to be consummately sold on his own personal importance and greatness, I could often be heard to utter a few words of wisdom in the background. "It is obvious that man thinks that a street should be named after him. I agree, but there are already a number out there in the city, and they all have arrows mounted on the signposts. The name of the street to which I am referring is quite simply, "…ONE WAY…"

Many times during my career I have spoken on the concept of teamwork. We in the fire service desperately need to embrace and develop according to this critical concept, as it lies at the heart of all that we seek to accomplish. However, the e-mail messages that are flowing into my office from around the world seem to point strongly in the opposite direction. If even a fraction of the plaintive pleas for help are to believed we are in the midst of a great period of unraveling.

There are those who apparently run their local fire department for their own personal amusement and enhancement. Rather than doing what is right and proper, they do whatever they want, casting aside the efforts of some really good people. It saddens me to see the continual stream of horror stories coming in from across North America.

This sets the state for the main subject of this week’s session with you. The seeds for this session were sent in by a professional associate in the Mid Atlantic region. He dropped me a short note indicating that he agreed with most of the points in last week’s commentary, The State of the Fire Service - One Man’s View. But attached to that note was a message from a friend. It was an extremely sad message, and one that disturbed me more than a little bit.

That message spoke volumes about a young person who was trying to do their best in a career agency, but was running into an over abundance of selfishness, and favoritism. Where others received much, this person received abuse, intolerance, and disillusionment. This person spoke of the feeling that they felt that they had to move along, because the source of their grief was a powerful person. Each member of this disillusioned person’s chain of command felt they owed their position to the powerful center of this person’s crumbling existence. So it should come as no surprise that no one in the chain of command spoke up in this person’s defense when an investigation was called for.

One of the aspects of this plaintive plea was the fact that this person was only asking to be treated like those other people around them. This person did not wish special treatment, they merely wished for equal treatment. Hey folks, haven’t we, as a nation, fought wars over this same matter. Sometimes I wonder how some people come to occupy certain positions. It is at times like this that I only have to reach into my bag of urban memories and come up with an anecdote involving someone who moved well beyond their experience and qualifications. Then it dawns on me that perhaps we, as a service are condemned to keep making the same sorry mistakes, over and over, and over.

Fortunately, it is at times like this, when my faith in humankind is challenged, another e-mail will come racing into my computer that gives me pause to hope for the future. Just such a thing happened about two days after I received the message written of above. But on a more uplifting note, let me share another e-mail message from a young lad in Southern New Jersey. He sent this in response to the same commentary.

"Mr. Carter, I am pleased to say that the article you have written, "The State of the Fire Service, One Man's View", is one to be applauded. As a five-year volunteer fire fighter/EMT for the city of Egg Harbor Township NJ, I would agree with your views. I must admit, being only 23 years old, I am far from what some would call "experienced". However, I continue to learn from everyday calls, both false and real, and try my best to do what I love to do with all my heart, help my community. I continue to push forward to get myself into a career department (Ocean City and Pleasantville), which seems like a never-ending battle. I will get there eventually, and I hope to raise the morale of the fire dept. wherever I am accepted. I have been told the stories of the fire service of the past, and I am saddened that it is in no way like it used to be. One man can’t change 50 years of changes, but I look forward to trying my hardest. Thank you for your thoughts, I wish you the best. Be safe. Frank Impagliazzo.

Let me now share my message to this dedicated lad with you.

Thank you for taking the time to send me your most supportive comments. I applaud you for your straightforward view of how to go on with your career. You have my best wishes in your endeavor to gain a career position.

When I see you wishing to undo 50 years of changes, it is my hope that you mean such things as selfishness, myopia, and "what's in it for me-ism. These three things have led to more negative changes than anything technological that has evolved within the fire service.

Go forward from this point with a firm resolve to operate in an unselfish manner. If you can spend 30 to 40 years doing what you love, with a goodness in your heart, then you will go a long way towards undoing many of the negative changes we have faced.

I am sure that each of you has read about or been told about the three position concept of leadership. In this each person is perceived as being in the midst of three simultaneous roles in their lives. Each leader is:

• An occupant of the position they hold
• An aspirant of the next position to which they want to move
• A teacher of that person who will move into their position.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I think I have an early-onset candidate for my position as a fire service thinker. I want to meet this young lad from Southern New Jersey. I want to share my view of the fire service and assess the depth and range of this fellow’s dedication to the service. He has played the solo notes that are music to my ears. I now wish to see whether he is capable of learning how to play in the band.

I have gotten my hopes up before, only to be disappointed by an individual’s fall from the way of a concerned and caring leader. I will not let my personal disappointments stop me from being a prophet for leadership change. I shall share the lessons of my life and my career. I shall then hope that my example can be a beacon that will lead this lad through the fog of the future that every young person faces.

There have been a number of beacons in my life. They were able to guide me through the rocks and shoals. Some of them may be well known to you, but I am sure that many of you are too young to know them all. Let me list a few of them for you.

When it comes to being an advocate for the fire service, few can match the dedication of the late Percy Bugbee. During his early years with the National Fire Protection Association, he would travel across America and Canada by train, as planes were not yet available. Many times he would spend nine to ten months of the year on the road as a prophet for the association. I cannot imagine how difficult was the road he traveled during the 1920’s and 1930’s. When the times get tough, I think of his example.

Another great influence in my life was Newark, New Jersey Fire Chief Joe Redden. Chief Redden saw the department through some of the toughest times in the city’s history. It was he who was at the helm when the riots of 1967 and 1968 hit Newark. It was his quiet dedication that showed me how a resolute and reasonable man can have a tremendous impact on their department. He helped me personally at a number of critical junctures in my career. For that I shall be eternally grateful.

Lastly, I wish to speak of my Pastor at Hope Lutheran Church during the years of 1985 to 1997. Pastor Albert Gibson taught me a great deal about life, leadership and team building. During the years that I was privileged to be a member of his flock. In Pastor Al, saw a person who knew how to bring the best out in the people of his flock. He had an uncanny knack for discovering what you were good at, and then growing you within that role. He provided the guidance and support that caused your personal strengths to grow and prosper. He also provided a great deal of personal guidance during a couple of rough periods in my life. His analogy of the gift that is unappreciated because of the package wherein it arrives saw me through some very terrible moments in my fire service career. I frequently share it with people who are at a critical juncture in their careers.

Rest assured that both of the people, whose e-mails formed the basis for this week’s sermon on the Internet, have a gift. Just as surely as I know this, I know that they will both suffer the abuse and discouragement that befalls people who believe in any cause. I offer both of these people my personal support and my most fervent prayers for them.

I wish them success. But I caution them that this success will come at a price. If they are willing to pay that price, they can dare to be great. If not, there are a great many stories about grumpy and disillusioned old men. Let us all hope and pray for a fire service future that nurtures rather than abuses its believers.

The commentary in this column does not necessarily reflect those of Firehouse.Com, Firehouse Magazine, their employees or parent company Cygnus Business Media. Harry R. Carter, Ph.D., MIFireE, is an internationally known municipal fire protection consultant and contributing editor to Firehouse Magazine. He recently retired as a Battalion Commander with the Newark, New Jersey Fire Department. His commentary appears regularly on Firehouse.Com. For more commentary and information, visit Carter's web site at www.harrycarter.com Harry has published several books available for online ordering, including Firefighting Strategy and Tactics and Management in the Fire Service