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NEPHI — Talk to any firefighter and they may not be able to fully explain why they love what they do, but they can tell you about the brotherhood they share with each other.
"It's great to be able to come together and have a common goal, especially in a small town such as ours because our brothers may actually be our brothers," said Captain Gilbert Peay with the Juab County Fire District in Nephi.
A few weeks ago, when more firefighters were needed to help put out wildfires in Washington State, Peay felt like this was his chance to help brothers he didn't know.
"We were all aware they had lost three firefighters already at the beginning of that fire. So it was a somber time," said Peay.
In all, six firefighters from the Juab County Fire District, as well as other fire departments in Central Utah, spent two weeks in Washington.
Juab's crew was assigned to protect homes in the small town of Disautel.
"Usually when we get called out, it's on someone's worst day," said Nathan Reynolds, a firefighter with the Juab County Fire District in Rocky Ridge. "We can be there to make their worst day a little bit better."
One of the worst days for this crew was seeing families leaving their homes as fast as they could.
"Watching them just grab everything they can fit in their car and that might be the last time they see their house, that is a little rough," said Ryan Stewart, a training officer with the Juab County Fire District in Levan.
Usually when we get called out, it's on someone's worst day. We can be there to make their worst day a little bit better.
–Nathan Reynolds, Juab County Fire District
However, seeing those families return was one of the highlights of their trip.
"All the work you do allows them to come back to their house at night instead of having it burn down. That makes it worth it," said Stewart.
Now that Peay, Stewart, Reynolds, Ryan Pettit, Michael Baird, and Sam Jensen are back home in Juab County, they say they feel that brotherhood stronger than ever.
Maybe that's why they love their job so much, because it gives them a sense of not only protecting themselves during a dangerous situation, but also because they're protecting their communities.
"A good thing about being a firefighter is when they show up, everybody is happy to see a firefighter," said Peay.
The firefighters are volunteer, but work in a district that pays them when they are called to fires.
That means they all have other full-time jobs.
"We couldn't so this without the support of our bosses in our normal jobs," said Peay. "The support has been tremendous to allow us to do this and help others." Contributing: Mike Radice
