VIDEO: This week, the City of Jackson is hosting an all-girls camp to inspire them to become first responders. Men account for 75% of workers in protective service fields in the U.S., according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from 2021.
That data also shows 4.4% of firefighters are women. The City of Jackson is hoping to change that with their second Female First Responders camp. The girls learn about the three main first responder fields: firefighting, EMS, and policing. They will do hands-on activities like search and rescue, extraction from a vehicle, and using a real fire hose. Aubree Dean, a current firefighter for Napeon Township, attended the camp last year as a camper. She said it helped her know that this was the field for her, and is glad to see so much interest from girls in the community.
โItโs great to know that there are so many girls in the county already working on fire departments, whether itโs paid or on call otherwise. To see all of these young girls that are interested in it the same way I was, and itโs just another great resource, this camp, to you know dip your feet in the water before you have to jump head in, dive in head first and just get some experience,โ said Dean. Dean feels that even though this field is still male-dominated, it is changing, and itโs important for these girls to have female role models to look up to.
