Daily Newsletters
Account
Washington Evening Journal
111 North Marion Avenue
Washington, IA 52353
319-653-2191
Mt. Pleasant Fire Department launches new Fire Cadet Program
First participants include sons of current Mt. Pleasant firefighters
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
MT. PLEASANT — The Mt. Pleasant Fire Department is introducing its first-ever Fire Cadet Program, with Aiden Blint and Jared Dorothy, sons of Fire Chief Anthony Blint and firefighter Aaron Dorothy, as the inaugural participants. Approved by the Mt. Pleasant City Council last month, the program aims to give young adults aged 14-17 a head start in learning the skills needed to become firefighters.
Both cadets come from a family legacy of firefighting. Aiden Blint, nearly 15, called the opportunity “pretty cool” and said it reflects his desire to serve his community.“ “Both my parents inspire me to help do good,” he added, crediting his father’s work as chief and his mother’s role as Mt. Pleasant Community School District Board President.
Chief Blint reflected on his son’s journey: “He’s been around here and helped out, and now he actually gets to do more in the near future.”
Growing up around the fire department, Aiden shared his excitement. “Just being around the fire department and seeing what they do kind of inspired me,” he said. His favorite memories include laughing and hanging out with the firefighter as well as helping with pancake breakfasts and open houses.
Jared Dorothy, 17, shared similar motivations. “My dad is a firefighter, and so I’ve always been around the firehouse,” Jared said. “When we decided to come up with this, I figured, might as well go with it.” He highlighted the program’s importance, saying, “It shows [kids] what it is like, what it really is, so they can learn and see if they really want to do it in the future.”
Chief Blint, who has spent years working to establish the program, expressed his excitement: “We’ve been trying in the last several years to get it started, and we just finally got through all the legwork and all the proper people to sign off on it.” He also attributes launching the program to Jared’s father Aaron Dorothy who he says, “really took the reins of it and took off running with it.”
The cadets will receive both classroom and on-scene training, although they will not engage in interior attacks or drive fire trucks. “They’ll be able to do just about everything … and slowly bring them along to understand the whole fire scene,” said Chief Blint.
The program fills a critical need for the department, which has seen a decline in volunteers. Earlier this year, Chief Blint reported that the roster had dropped to 16 members and one reserve, down from 26 members with five reserves. He believes the cadet program could create a pipeline for future firefighters. “The big goal of the program is to get these gentlemen or ladies ready when they come to be 18 … to take the firefighter one class and pass the test,” Blint said.
The program will not be funded by any city money or money from the fire department’s budget. Chief Blint says they are currently in the process of gathering grants and donations from the community to equip the cadets with gear and fund other program expenses.
Blint also emphasized the value of starting with a small group to refine the program. “As of right now, we wanted to start with two people … so if there’s anything that we need to change for the benefit of the cadets or the fire department, we can get that done easier with having two parents of the two new cadets on the department,” he said.
Looking ahead, the department hopes to expand. “We’d like to get up to four [cadets] … and keep working forward that way,” Chief Blint said.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
