Copyright 2006 The News Tribune
‘Awesome’ year for female firefighter; it helps when she’s on a pregnancy call
By ANGIE LEVENTIS
The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington)
Lakewood’s fire chief said he would have been happy to hire just one female firefighter several years ago.
He finally got his wish two years ago when Jo Kinney got on with the department
The 37-year-old mother of two made it through her standard probationary period and became a full member of the department last January. She’s proud to have helped fight two structure fires by handling the water pump. “It’s really been awesome,” she said.
Shortly after Kinney arrived, the chief exceeded his goal when the department hired its second female firefighter, 27-year-old Jayme Lind. Chief Paul Webb hopes more women will apply.
“Both of our female firefighters are doing great,” he said. “The fact of the matter is that people get here on their own merits.”
Although he would like to attribute their arrival to extra recruiting efforts, he said it was more likely coincidental. He noted that standards are the same regardless of gender and all he can do is encourage more women to apply - no one gets special treatment.
As for Kinney, she said her gender hasn’t been an issue for her or the rest of the department. But sometimes being a woman can help, particularly in cases where children are scared or a female victim has been abused by men in the past.
Kinney said she also loves pregnancy calls and has responded to about a half-dozen of them.
“I say, ‘Honey, I can relate,’ ” she said.
The former schoolteacher has since moved from Bellingham to Gig Harbor, which has significantly reduced her commute and gives the single mom more time with her sons, Jackson, 8, and Logan, 4.
She said being a firefighter is surprisingly conducive to motherhood. While she spends overnight shifts at fire stations, she also gets several days off in a row to spend with the kids. They get to go on long camping trips in the summer and she occasionally eats lunch with them at school.
Her neighbor - the wife of a Puyallup firefighter - watches the boys when she’s at the station. She said it shows how close-knit the firefighting community can be. “It doesn’t matter what department you work for,” Kinney said. “We’re all like a family.”