By Kelle Barr
Kalamazoo Gazette

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Jordan Taylor thinks she might be a firefighter or a police officer when she grows up.

"It would be scary, but I think I could do it, because I would be helping to keep our country safe," said Jordan, 11, of Kalamazoo.

"I also want to be a Big Sister when I grow up," said Jordan, who is waiting to be matched with a Big Sister herself.

Jordan, a sixth-grader at Arcadia Elementary School, began pondering these goals after she was outfitted in a firefighter's jacket and helmet and allowed to spray water with a fire hose in the parking lot of Kalamazoo Public Safety Station No. 6, on Howard Street.

Jordan was among 10 kids who got a chance Dec. 15 to tour the station, eat breakfast with firefighters and Kalamazoo Public Safety officers, and learn about their jobs.

The tour collaboration between Kalamazoo Public Safety and Big Brothers Big Sisters is a new component of Cops Care, a multifaceted program formed to build relationships between police and area youths. After its successful kickoff, the station-visit program is expected to occur quarterly.

Pat Wujkowski, 40, took the group into the firemen's dorm to show them where the firefighters sleep and give them a window into the daily routine of a firefighter.

"You might wonder why firemen go around breaking windows during a fire," Wujkowski said to the group of wide-eyed youths, many wearing red plastic fire hats. "It's because we need to get the heat out and the smoke out of the building in case there's someone trapped inside."

"Most people who die in a fire, die from smoke inhalation, not from burns," Wujkowski said. "So it's important to get that smoke out as fast as we can."

He detailed the risks his job entails.

"We will take more risks when there are lives at stake," Wujkowski said. "If it's only property, we don't need to take as many. But if someone else's life is at risk, we'll risk ours to save them."

Wujkowski took questions from the kids, some of whom attended with their Big Sisters or Brothers. One wanted to know what firemen wear to bed, while another wondered what qualifications people have to have to become an officer or a firefighter.

"Go to college," Wujkowski answered. "Departments hire mostly college-degreed people."

It isn't difficult to get youngsters interested in public-safety work, according to Lt. Pat Wright.

"What kid doesn't want to goof around in a fire truck or get into the seat of a patrol car and see all the gadgets?" Wright said. "We've got the hook, and what we can do with it is unlimited."

Wendell Jackson, 14, of Portage, attended the tour with his Big Brother, Ed Bernard, 56, of Kalamazoo. Bernard is the president of Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Wendell is a student at Portage Central Middle School.

"He was really excited to come here today," Bernard said, while Wendell poked his head into the dorm to check out the firefighters' sleeping quarters, and then climbed into the driver's seat of a firetruck and listened to a blasting siren.

"This has been a pretty noisy day," Wendell said, as some of the other kids covered their ears. "I learned a lot today. I learned how much pressure it takes to shoot water from the fire hose, and I learned that firemen and policemen work together. I never knew they did that."

Jodi Victor, director of marketing and public relations for Big Brothers Big Sisters, said she's excited about the partnership.

"The DPS understands how this benefits the community and how it helps kids see what their options are," she said.

Peter Tripp, executive director of Big Brothers Big Sisters, attended the event with his own Little Brother, Deontae Grady-Foth, 10, of Kalamazoo.

"So many of the kids we see have misconceptions about the police," he said. "This program helps them see the officers and firefighters as positive role models.

"He (Deontae) had a great time. He was just awestruck by the big trucks and all of the hands-on activities he got to participate in today."

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