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Minorities and women lacking in area fire agencies

Tribune Chronicle / R. Michael Semple Howland’s fire safety inspector, Kelly McGilton, is one of only three full-time women firefighters in Trumbull County. A second, Gloria Beck, also works for Howland. McGilton said she has felt so strongly about the lack of women firefighters that she has made time to speak at career days at area schools to generate interest among girls and young women.

It was 1995 when Bazetta Township hired the first full-time female firefighter in Trumbull County, according to township fire Chief Dennis Lewis. But in the 22 years since then, local departments have made little progress increasing the number of women that work in this predominantly male profession.

That first female firefighter, Carolyn Weller, remained on the job for only two years before leaving Bazetta Township’s department in 1997. Today, Bazetta has no women or minority firefighters. In all, only three women hold full-time firefighter positions in Trumbull County — two in Howland and one in Niles.

Bazetta, Newton Falls Joint Fire District and Girard each have no paid female firefighters. Warren City Fire Department has no women on its 50-person staff. That department employs three African-American men. No other departments in Trumbull County employ African-American firefighters in paid positions — full or part time.

Howland Township Fire Department is the only Trumbull County department to boast two women among its ranks of 24 full-time, 18 part-time and five volunteer firefighters. Firefighters Kelly McGilton and Gloria Beck each started in the medical field, with Beck earning emergency medical service training and McGilton working first as a nurse who had interest in becoming an emergency medical technician.

Beck said she worked as a full-time firefighter in Boardman beginning in 2001 before moving over to the Howland department two years later. McGilton earned her EMT certification in 1996, and one year later was training to become a firefighter.

As two of just three full-time women firefighters in Trumbull County, both Beck and McGilton have seen firsthand the slow growth of women in the field, but they believe strides are being made — for both men and women.

“Since more women have entered the field, equipment, such as self-contained breathing units, have gotten lighter, and there have been improvements on trucks that have made it easier for both men and women,” Beck said.

Beck said she would love to see more young women enter the field but points out that the right attitude is key.

“It is a matter of personal temperament. Women looking to enter the field have to have a thick skin,” Beck said. “Generally, I advise young women interested in the field to go to bigger cities and townships where they can get more opportunities.”

McGilton has felt so strongly about the lack of women firefighters that she has made time to speak at career days at area schools to generate interest among girls and young women.

Niles is the only other Trumbull department with a full-time woman firefighter, Abigail Cline of Warren, who was hired just last month as part of the department’s $1 million SAFER grant. The department employs no minority firefighters. Niles Chief David Danielson, like many others in the area, blames the limited number of women and minorities on the lack of diversified candidates.

“These positions have been open to everyone,” he said. “We had some females take and pass the written portion of the test but could not pass the physical test.”

The department has one more position to fill, likely by someone on the department’s current list of qualified candidates. The list contains no minority or female candidates.

While the Cortland Fire Department operates with 10 full-time and 25 part-time firefighters, along with six volunteers, no women or minorities are among any of the paid positions, fire Chief David Rea said. Rea, whose department has four women working as volunteer firefighters, says, however, he has seen an uptick in the number of women seeking firefighter positions.

“We had seven women apply and pass a written exam for the department,” Rea said last week.

It’s the requirement for volunteer time and significant amounts of training hours that make it a challenge for anyone — male or female — to work their way into a paid firefighter position, Rea said.

Candidates interested in fighting fires in Howland can get training at the Howland Fire and EMS Training Center, started by Howland Fire Department in the mid-1990s. The next training academy begins June 5, he said.

“We do get female and minority candidates at the school,” Howland fire Chief James Pantalone said. “We also operate the TCTC Public Safety program, which introduces high school students to careers in police, fire and emergency medical services.”

It’s training schools like the ones offered in Howland, and similar programs, and heavy recruiting in Youngstown, that might be some of the reason these two departments employ more than one woman each. In Youngstown, it’s also helped in recruiting minority firefighters as well.

Five of the 124 firefighters at Youngstown City Fire Department are women, according to city fire Chief John O’Neill. O’Neill said his department has been working to recruit potential candidates in the city for many years.

“We want our department to be reflective of our city’s makeup, so we work hard to try to recruit minority and female firefighters,” O’Neill said.

He said he knows communities want to see more minority and female firefighters, and they must work hard to accomplish that goal.

“Recruitment is not something you do here and there,” he said. “It is a process that is worked at over a long period of time. It may take years to accomplish.”

To help fill these voids, O’Neill leans heavily on the Youngstown Black Firefighters Association, which goes to churches, community centers, fairs and schools in the Youngstown area to talk to young people about the fire service.

rsmith@tribtoday.com

Firefighter training opportunities

• What: Howland Fire Department’s next fire training academy. Passing students are eligible for career fire certification.

• When: Begins June 5 for eight weeks

• Where: Brookfield Fire Department

• For information: Call 330-856-5022, Ext. 1097.

• What: Youngstown Fire Department fire training school

• When: March 27 to April 18

• For information: Call Youngstown Fire Department.

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