11/21/2025
Tonight, we take a moment to thank our kids. This one will bring a tear to any first responder's eye. First responder kids are arguably some of the most resilient kids you could find. These kids give up more than any kid should so we can do what we do.
We joke at the station that all of our kids are going to have abandonment issues because most of them have been left at various places around town when the pager goes off. They have been left at the Dollar Store, the hardware store, the corner three blocks away from home where we tell them to "tuck and roll," (just kidding, but maybe we do that sometimes 😅) the station, school, pretty much anywhere. They rarely complain about it. They just know it is part of being our kids.
We have to run out on birthdays, holidays, school concerts, meals, and bed time.
Although we try to hide it, these sweet kids sometimes see us at our worst. They see us after tough calls sometimes retreat within ourselves. They are there to offer much needed hugs. They are intuitive to our feelings and moods, often times when they shouldn't have to be.
Our teenagers get the lectures over and over and over about wearing their seatbelts and not drinking and driving and making good decisions after we have been out all night on calls where we see the results of these decisions.
So to all of our amazing, resilient, caring, intuitive, loving kids, we love you all more than you know and we appreciate the sacrifices you make. They do not go unnoticed.
