“Technology will not change firefighters’ duties, but it will enhance their abilities.”

Fire Chief Darren Brinkkoeter

Why did you become a firefighter?

Chief Darren Brinkkoeter earned his passion for firefighting from his father, a 40-year veteran of the fire service. During his dad’s time in the fire service, it was common for firefighters to work one shift on followed by one shift off. He literally spent half of his working life at the fire house.

When the pager went off, Brinkkoeter used to sneak into his dad’s ’59 Ford and hide in the backseat under the bunker gear. Although his dad would get upset when he found him, young Mr. Brinkkoeter did whatever it took to be in the action.

Brinkkoeter was amazed by all that the firefighters did with the small amount of equipment they had access to. “They would listen to and feel the hose to make sure the proper pressure was there,” Chief Brinkkoeter recalled. “When they pulled up to the scene, they made sure to park the truck perfectly every time so they could hook up to the hydrant without losing a prime.”

“It made me want to be a firefighter even more. I wanted to be just as good as those guys were.”

Today Chief Brinkkoeter is the Fire Chief for Canyon Lake Fire / EMS. He can’t wait to get to work every morning so he can work towards meeting the example of excellence that his father and his father’s crewmates set for him as a young child.

What words of advice do you have for other firefighters?

“Never give up.”

As a high school student, Brinkkoeter’s counselors told him that he needed a college degree if he wanted to be successful in life. This was in spite of the fact that Brinkkoeter knew he wanted to be a firefighter.

It was a difficult decision for him to not go to college, but he chose to focus on his goal of becoming a firefighter instead. He put his head down and set out to prove that he would be successful, even without a college degree.

He attended seminars, classes, and academies, in addition to his duties as a firefighter. In the end, his hard work paid off, and he did prove that he could be very successful without a college degree.

“Give 100% to everything you do.”

Chief Brinkkoeter has given 100% to every job he has had and it has paid dividends for him. The only problem his dedication created was that employers did not want him to leave…

Even after getting his fire certification and earning a position as a firefighter, his prior manager convinced him to continue changing oil for 13 years after he started as a sophomore in high school.

What changes do you foresee in the fire service?

“Technology is going to be one of the key factors of change in the future,” Chief Brinkkoeter stated. “It will not change the firefighter’s duties, but it will enhance the firefighter’s abilities.”

Chief Brinkkoeter has seen many advances in technology over the last 30 years. “I would have laughed if you told me that we would be able to monitor firefighter O2 levels from outside the building,” he admitted.

After seeing how technology has had such a significant impact throughout his career, Chief Brinkkoeter is confident that technology will continue to move the fire service forward.

Firefighting is a high-stress, high-performance occupation. When duty calls, it is usually someone’s worst day and it is always the firefighters’ job to address the situation as soon as possible.

“It’s important to remember that we’re still humans.”

For Chief Brinkkoeter, the good times in the firehouse with crewmates helped him cope with the challenges of the job.

“The camaraderie is unmatched. It’s what makes firefighters, firefighters.”