Meet the Responders

Growing up, I worked as a ranch hand outside Ennis, Montana during the summers and spent countless hours in the mountains chasing cows and fixing fence. After high school, I pursued a degree in fire science and since then, my passion has always been firefighting. I am currently a captain with Missoula Fire Department and have feverishly pursued the wildland fire arena, working all over the country on wildland fires. I have also helped develop MFD’s technical rescue program. Teaching has been a very rewarding experience and has helped shape me as an emergency provider.

My first medical experience came through an Aerie WFR course which lead to a ski patrol job at Montana Snowbowl. My fire career began at the Forest Service’s Ninemile Ranger Station in 2005 and continued with the Lolo Hotshots and Missoula Ranger District until 2014. In 2013, I became an EMT and began working for the Missoula Fire Department in 2015. I have been afforded the opportunity to learn from, and teach with, many seasoned firefighters over the years.

A 4th generation Montana native, I began my fire career with the Department of State Lands (now DNRC) in Libby, MT. I fought fire for the Forest Service out of Troy, MT and at Dalton Station on the Angeles NF, then returned to Montana as a Firefighter for the Missoula Fire Department (MFD). During my time with MFD I specialized in wildland fire and incident management. After retiring from MFD in 2017, I joined Aerie to assist in developing the wildland fire program. I currently live in Northern Greece where I am studying Mediterranean fire behavior and European fire management.