“Making Things Better:” The Women of Maple Grove Fire Department
A few months ago, a simple post by Maple Grove Fire Department on Facebook during Women’s History Month took off in a way some in the department may not have expected. The image was of the department’s dozen women firefighters, altogether in one place–a rarity given the different shifts and stations each one works–and smiling. The post garnered thousands of likes and dozens of comments, thanking the women for being valuable members of the department.
The women of Maple Grove Fire Department appear in a Facebook photo earlier this year. (MGFD Facebook page)
“It’s important to recognize it until it’s not important to recognize it,” said Lt. Sheila Manelli. “When you think about the world population, it’s pretty much 50-50, so until we can see that same representation in really any aspect of life, it’s important to reflect on that and note it” she said of being a women and a firefighter. “I’ve never felt like being a woman was holding me back or something that people notice or are aware of as being less than for the job, and so it’s been amazing in Maple Grove. You’re still aware of it. It’s still majority men. But our female population is ticking up, every year, which is wonderful.”
Manelli trained alongside three other women on a warm spring evening in May. They listened as the group was given instructions and then went in to simulate the rescue of an incapacitated fellow firefighter in a simulated fire situation.
Lt. Sheila Manelli with Maple Grove Fire Department
“You can take all the classes in the world, all the online trainings, but it’s that everyday, hands-on experience is where you really grow and learn and become who you are,” said Manelli.
Many similarities apply to Manelli’s role with the fire department and her full-time job as an instructor at Orangetheory Fitness in Maple Grove.
“You get to know everybody, you get to follow them on their journey,” she said about working at the fitness center. “You get to help them reach their goals, and become more fit, stronger, and more confident and sure of themselves.”
‘Perceptions Have Changed Quite A Bit’
Lt. Stephanie Firestone is in a firefighting family; her husband and her son are also Maple Grove firefighters.
“There’s a lot of support, there’s a lot of handing keys as you’re running out the door,” she said about being a firefighter married to a firefighter. “There’s a lot of information that passes, as well as a lot of support that happens.”
Firestone is immensely proud of her son’s firefighting career, as well.
“It’s super-fun to watch him, and every time I’m like, ‘Oh, look at that,’ and ‘Look at what he’s doing now!’ it’s really…I’m super-proud,” she said. “He’s an incredible firefighter, so it’s fun that other people see it, too.”
Lt. Stephanie Firestone, center, with her husband and son at a Maple Grove Fire Department training. (Courtesy Stephanie Firestone)
Firestone said she feels like her role in the military and her career as a firefighter are similar in that when she started, there weren’t nearly as many women as there are in those same roles today.
“Over the course of the last several years, with people really engaging with it, we’ve grown. So, seeing the number of women we have in Maple Grove Fire is huge. Seeing how they’re interactive and how we interact together is really fantastic,” she said. “I think that in a male-dominated profession, you can have a perception of things, and I think over the last 10 to 15 years, those perceptions have changed quite a bit.”
Lt. Crystal Larson, left, and Lt. Stephanie Firestone at a Maple Grove Fire Department training session in May.
Firestone and other women firefighters agree: they don’t want to be treated any differently.
“You want to be included, you don’t want to be looked at separately, you want to be a part of the team and a part of the solution, making things better,” Firestone said. “When you can really cross that barrier and it doesn’t become about that anymore and really are fully integrated, it’s beautiful.”
‘We’re All Sisters and Brothers’
Lt. Crystal Larson said the hardest part about being a paid on-call firefighter is dropping what she’s doing and running out to a call that comes in.
“You could be doing homework, I could be cooking a meal, anything like that,” said Larson. “You just have to drop it and go. Sometimes, you’re back in a few minutes. Sometimes, it’s several hours before you get back.”
She said several years ago the department’s chief convinced her to sign up to be a firefighter.
“The sense of community here, it doesn’t matter. Women and men, we’re all sisters and brothers,” she said. “We do sometimes go through a lot and super-serious situations or intense situations, and we’ve always got each other’s back.”
Larson said the photo shoot that resulted in the viral Facebook post was a memorable time.
“It was really nice for us to get together,” she said. “We have five different stations, so we’re kind of spread around…I got a lot of comments from my Facebook community about ‘Wow, it’s so many people. Is it all females in your fire department?’ I was like, ‘No. We have 100 firefighters.'”
To find out more about what it takes to become a paid on-call firefighter with Maple Grove, click here.
