Photo By 1st Lt. Christi Richter | Master Sgt. Jeffrey R. Burgett poses for a photo in the propulsion shop at the 179th...... read more read more
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The forty-hour work week can be demanding for anyone, but for Master Sgt. Jeffrey R. Burgett, this is just the tip of the iceberg of his weekly responsibilities. Airman by day, Fire chief by night, Burgett wears many hats and uses all of them to give back to others.
Burgett is one of the work leaders for the Propulsion Section of the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield, Ohio. When he isn’t working at the 179th AW, he doubles as the Fire Chief for the Lakeville Station, Western Holmes County Fire District and EMS Chief for the district as well. Burgett has been working as a volunteer firefighter and EMT once he graduated high school in 2000.
Inspiration to join the force came from watching his father over the years;
“I basically started volunteering because my dad was also on the force,” said Burgett. “As a kid I watched him respond to calls and go out and help in our community. And so I guess I’ve always just wanted to do that.”
What started as inspiration from his dad eventually evolved into a full-on family affair.
“My dad, two uncles, and cousin are all part of the force. It’s very much a family thing. It’s a family thing for us, literally, but the fire department is its own unique family as well.”
The fire department is composed of all volunteers from the community. When an emergency call is dispatched, members get alerts to their phones and radios. From start to finish, an emergency EMS call will last about an hour and a half and can happen at all hours.
Burgett became Fire Chief of the Lakeville Station in 2015 and then Chief of EMS in 2016. Nominees for these positions are ultimately appointed by the district board but first elected by their peers.
Although the hours can be grueling, and the need can be demanding, Burgett says that he likes the position because of the people he gets to help and work with;
“My favorite part of all of it is just going out and helping. I just like helping the people honestly. I really enjoy when we go out and help people in their most needed times and being able to be a part of that and hopefully resolving a bad situation as best as we can to make it better.”
So how does Burgett handle the pressure and time commitments of not one, but three jobs? When it comes to balancing his weekly responsibilities, Burgett says he owes a lot to his incredible teams.
"I think pretty much what makes things go for me is the people that I’m working with. One person can’t do it all by themselves. In the engine shop at the 179th, we’ve got a good young team here that we’re working with and improving all the time. They’re all doing great. The same goes for my civilian career, it's a team effort” said Burgett.
Time management isn’t the only challenge that these responsibilities bring. Calls can come in, morning, day, or night, twenty-four hours a day. The team also has other limitations as well.
Keeping up with current EMS technology is one of the many obstacles they face.
In addition, it can also be hard to find volunteers to take on such a big and scarcely compensated responsibility. Volunteers get small stipends to help make up for gas money and other minimal expenses, but it’s very clear that they do not volunteer for the money. For Burgett, the feeling of helping people and the service he gets to provide to his community both during and after their emergencies makes all of the difference.
“I guess for me it’s not necessarily just the call that you take, it’s some of the things after the call. Like, if we have a really bad incident, it’s about checking up on everybody and making sure everybody’s doing okay. And we get to give some extra help at times. We had a bad call recently of a very young boy. The call itself was just a really, really unfortunate situation. But, we were able to provide a little bit of counseling and we took a truck down there and set up a hose and sprayed water out and let the kids run underneath it. It made it a healing process for the people involved with that incident but also for our own personnel as well."
Burgett and his group of volunteers all use their personal skills, strengths, and talents to not only stop fires and care for the injured but to help their community in times of hardship.
“That’s one good thing about the volunteer service,” said Burgett. “There are so many people with different experiences. You’ve got to be able to let those experiences help you in areas that are needed. One of our EMT Paramedics is a pastor, who is able to help check in on the people for counseling. We’ve got highway workers, construction workers, nurses, farmers, factory workers, truck drivers, office workers, and many others. Basically just using the strengths of our people to offer help where it’s needed is vital.”
Between life as an Airman, a Fire Chief, and an EMT, Burgett is a prime example of servicemen helping people both in and out of uniform. His life is a constant balance of dedication to giving back and serving his country and helping his community. By dedicating his time to helping as a volunteer Fire and EMS Chief, he exemplifies the value of service before self each and every day.
| Date Taken: | 09.10.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 09.11.2018 13:51 |
| Story ID: | 292113 |
| Location: | MANSFIELD, OH, US |
| Web Views: | 465 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, Airman Serves Community Both in and Out Of Uniform, by 1st Lt. Christi Richter, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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