David Mellen's Page

During the invocation at this years FDIC, Father John Carney compared firefighters to children.  He went on to explain that the qualities shared among children and firefighters was to be trusting, dependant, resilient, honest, sometimes tackless, playful, and to have great imagination.  A firefighters quest for knowledge and…

Public safety and customer service go hand in hand.  As many of us know, our customers are the ones that keep us around.  Whether it’s a fire, vehicle accident, medical, or a public education event, we are here to serve our customers.  When I first became involved in the fire service I had a mentor who taught me an invaluable lesson.  No matter how bad your day is going when you respond to someone in need, their day is far worse.  That lesson has…

The term “A perfect storm” refers to a combination of events that contributes to the drastic aggravation of a situation. From severe weather to a seeming unfathomable chain of events, this phrase is widely used.

In the fire service,…

For most of us in the fire service this job is a calling. It’s not something we do, it’s something we are, [insert additional corny saying here].  The bottom line is that we have dedicated ourselves to this profession for whatever reason and agreed to the responsibilities of our job; to help those who require our services in their time of need.

But some, including myself, have at one point lost…