VIDEO/PHOTOS: Firefighter Ezra Aitch grabs a rolling pin from a drawer at Engine 32 Firehouse on Milwaukeeโs west side and goes to work. He spreads flour on a football-sized lump of dough and rolls it out flat. It would become the shell of three calzones big enough to feed several firefighters at lunch during their 24-hour shift at one of the busiest firehouses in the city.
When lunch is finished, and dishes are cleaned and put away, MFD Heavy Equipment Operator Jesse Mrotek reaches for the phone and sends a message that will be heard throughout the firehouse: “Pickle Ball. Five Minutes.” As good at Aitch is with a rolling pin, heโs even better with a pickleball paddle. Considered to be one of the best overall athletes in the department, Aitch started playing pickleball during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thatโs about the same time the popular sport was taking off as a hobby in firehouses across Milwaukee.
The sport is a perfect fit for the firefighter community, who are required to be in or around the firehouse for their entire shift โ except, of course, in the case of emergency calls. “You have to be able to do something in the firehouse with your free time,” said Lt. Mike Schwade. “Some people will run around the firehouse, some guys play basketball, we used to play a lot of handball.”
