The Firehouse Yak: Ryan Pennington – You’re Always a Firefighter First
Charleston, WV, Battalion Chief Ryan Pennington joins Peter Matthews to talk about his approach to every shift, reminding himself that he’s a firefighter first and foremost. With that approach, Pennington’s foundation remains rooted in the basics while he has promoted through the fire department.
Pennington falls back on the principles he used to launch his training company, The Views from the Jumpseat, reminding listeners that the jumpseat is where all firefighters plant their roots in the fire service.
They talk about climbing the career ladder and reacting to the number of podcasts, articles and social media talking calling for better fire service leadership and discuss the recurring challenges faced in departments across the country.
How do you start every day as with a firefighter first mentality? Listen to the podcast to find out!
About the Author
Peter Matthews
Editor-in-Chief/Conference Director
Peter Matthews is the conference director and editor-in-chief of Firehouse. He has worked at Firehouse since 1999, serving in various roles on both Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com staffs. He completed an internship with the Rochester, NY, Fire Department and served with fire departments in Rush, NY, and Laurel, MD, and was a lieutenant with the Glenwood Fire Company in Glenwood Landing, NY. Matthews served as photographer for the St. Paul, MN, Fire Department and currently is a photographer for the Fort Worth, TX, Fire Department.
Ryan Pennington
RYAN PENNINGTON is a 25-year veteran of fire/EMS. He currently serves as a battalion chief with the Charleston, WV, Fire Department, where he has served for the past 20 years. Pennington has lectured and trained thousands of firefighters across the United States and internationally at conferences, including Firehouse Expo and Firehouse World, and has been published in many fire service publications.