Rogers reflects on time at AH Fire Department

Nathan Rogers entered his second year with the Airway Heights Fire Department in a new role.

Rogers was one of two firefighters promoted to lieutenant on Dec. 30, 2014.

Born in Spokane, Rogers moved with his family to Vancouver, Wash., when he was 5 years old.

He was attending the University of Washington, and was about to graduate with a degree in human resources, when he realized he wanted a career that was both exciting and where he would be making a difference in people's lives.

"I made the decision that I did not want to be sitting behind a desk all day," Rogers said. "I started exploring my options and looked around at different police and fire departments throughout the state. My sister was attending Whitworth and I was looking to move back to the area."

Rogers said his family was intrigued when he brought up the possibility of firefighting. Although he had no relatives who were firefighters, one of his family's close friends was the battalion fire chief for the Vancouver Fire Department.

He sent in an application and met with Airway Heights Fire Chief Mitch Metzger, who sold him on the idea of becoming a volunteer firefighter. One of the first things he noticed was how much the career staff appreciate the volunteers.

"A lot of combination departments have a divide between the career and volunteer staff," Rogers said. "It's the exact opposite here. Everyone here is on the same playing field."

Rogers attended the West Plains Fire Academy where he received the basics of firefighting and earned his certifications. After the fire academy, he went through emergency medical technician training. He later attended the Crew Leader's academy.

"Going into the academy I had no idea what to expect," Rogers said. "I didn't realize there was so much textbook knowledge to grasp. I thought the majority would be going out and getting that practical hands-on training. It's pretty close to 50/50."

As a volunteer, Rogers was one of the firefighters who helped fight the Carlton Complex fire back in the summer, which he said was his first large-scale wildfire.

"We were very sleep deprived going into it," Rogers said. "By the time we were out of there it was very surreal. Your mind is not entirely processing what's going on but you're getting it done safely. Looking back I'm very lucky and thankful of all of the training I've had here to get us prepared for it."

For Rogers, being a lieutenant requires him to use his leadership skills and to harvest knowledge from his crew to make decisions and serve citizens better. Being fresh out of the academy also allows him to relate to his crew and talk to them about some of the hardships they may encounter on the job.

"If people want to come in and get some extra practice, I'm willing to come in and help," Rogers said. 'It's rewarding to help these people become better and realize their full potential."

For Rogers, his biggest joy of being a firefighter is making a difference in people's lives.

"When we go out there, somebody is probably having one the worst days of their life and to have an opportunity to go out there and make it better is rewarding," Rogers said. "On some of those days it requires a lot of hard work on our part. You come back and you're worn out but you know you did the best you could."

Al Stover can be reached at [email protected].