Fired up for their assembly

Lauren Vane

Nearly every child has a firefighter outfit somewhere in a stockpile

of dress-up clothes. Something about the shiny red hat and yellow

slicker says “hero,” making firefighting a favorite early career

choice.

The students in Cat Hunter’s kindergarten class at Peterson

Elementary have spent the past few weeks learning about various

careers from classroom parents. But when the fire engine pulled up on

Friday morning, it was clear that one parent -- and his chosen

profession -- definitely took the cake.

Huntington Beach firefighter Cpt. Jeff Nelson and fellow firemen

drove onto the Peterson playground on Engine 41 to give a

presentation on what it’s like to be a firefighter. Nelson’s son,

Dustin, is in Hunter’s class.

“Of course, to have a fire truck come is a real highlight,” Hunter

said.

When Hunter’s students, joined by those in the other kindergarten

classes, spilled out of their portables and saw the shiny red

firetruck their eyes grew wide. Scrambling to take a seat on the

grass in front of the truck, the children squirmed with anticipation.

Huntington Beach Fire and Paramedic Engine 41 sat on the asphalt

playground taunting the children like a giant toy.

“It always seems like kids have little dreams about being a

firefighter or a policeman,” Nelson said.

The children were buzzing with questions from the moment they sat

down, but the firefighters hushed their babbling and made safety the

first topic of discussion.

“What number do you call if you need the fire department?” Nelson

asked the children.

The students proudly -- and loudly -- recited the correct answer:

“9-1-1.” Nelson reminded the children that dialing 911 is not a game, and that they should never call and hang up.

Nelson also made sure the students knew the stop, drop and roll

rule.

“If your clothes catch on fire, you go on the ground and roll like

a corn dog,” Nelson said.

Firefighter Darrin Witt used Nelson’s son, Dustin, as a volunteer

to demonstrate some of the equipment the paramedics use. Witt hooked

Dustin up to the EKG machine and printed out a reading of Dustin’s

heart activity.

Hunter was the lucky volunteer chosen to model the firefighter

equipment before her class and the other kindergartners.

“Is it my size?” Hunter said. As she pulled up the suspenders on

the baggy turnouts, or fire fighter bibs, the children shrieked with

laughter.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen an unhappy kid when we’ve done

this,” firefighter paramedic Ray Casillas said of the visit.

After students listened attentively to fire safety rules and an

explanation of fire equipment, the firemen awarded the students with

junior firefighter hats.

With their new appointments came new responsibility: Each student

was given a chance to spray a real fire hose, hooked up at low

pressure, of course.