Firefighter Speaks at DM Rotary
Jennifer Akin, Golden Ranch Deputy Fire Marshal, spoke to the club about her experiences as a firefighter and her hopes for selection as one of the participants in the professional development certificate program at Rotary's Peace Fellow Center at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand. With a degree in civil engineering from Arizona State University, Jennifer started her professional life doing transportation projects at an engineering firm in Glendale. She developed an interest in firefighting, and she served in the Whispering Pines Volunteer Fire Department in Payson for about a year before joining the Golden Ranch Fire District as an EMT. She took firefighting courses at Glendale Community College. At Golder Ranch, she has been a fire investigator and has been deputy fire marshal since 2015.
Rotary District 5500 endorsed Jennifer as a peace fellow candidate last summer, and she is a finalist to be one of 40 students chosen for the program in Thailand. She says she is interested in this program, "because it is a unique opportunity to give back while meeting people from all over the world. I am currently in a position where my employer is supportive of the growth that I would gain from being a part of the fellowship program." Her proposed project for the one-year program is to help fire stations install gardens. She says gardening is a way for firefighters to wind down from stressful jobs.
In addition to being a firefighter, Jennifer has been a Habitat for Humanity Global Village volunteer in Honduras, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic. She also participates in funding microcredit projects in several countries.
Service Above Self
Marana, AZ 85658
United States of America