“We must all work together to develop our mental health toolboxes.”

Chief Julie Downey began her career in the fire service as a fire cadet in high school at a volunteer fire department. She went through firefighting school right after high school and continued to always work hard and train throughout her career to get to where she is today.

She has earned prestigious decorations as a result of her excellence throughout her career in the fire service. In 2018, the Florida Fire Chief’s Association named Chief Downey as the Florida Fire Chief of the Year and in 2019, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the First There First Care Conference.

“The opportunity to help people and touch people’s lives is my favorite part of the job,” Chief Downey highlighted her passion for firefighting.

Whether it’s on the fire side, making a quick knockdown of a fire to save someone’s property or the EMS side, saving someone’s life — Chief Downey always jumps at the opportunity to help those in need.

Being the only female in the fire department required a lot of changes in the station and Chief Downey blazed that trail for other female firefighters to have the same opportunity.

When she first started, there were no doors on the bathroom stalls in the fire station.

Dealing with the spouses of the male firefighters was another challenge. They suggested that Chief Downey and other female firefighters were in the fire service to find a husband… That is far from the truth.

Chief Downey was able to overcome these difficulties by having an open mind and discussing the issues with her superiors in the right manner. She is grateful for superiors and chief officers who would listen and take her recommendations.

“Most people, including ourselves, don’t understand how the difficult calls really impact firefighters. We, as firefighters are evolving in that aspect but we need to continue to work on acknowledging that the difficult calls can take a toll on us.”

In the past, a firefighter was considered weak for getting help, but now we are understanding that it is crucial to talk about these issues.

In order to address these issues, Chief Downey urges that fire departments offer a variety of resources for help. Some people need a professional therapist, some prefer a chaplain, and others just want to talk with peer support.

Although it starts with the fire department, this burden shouldn’t fall solely on the shoulders of the firefighters and the administration. The professional support of therapists, chaplains, and peer mentors is necessary to combat mental health issues among firefighters.

“If a therapist doesn’t understand the severity of calls that we respond to, we sometimes make them cry. We must all work together to develop our mental health toolboxes.”

Earlier in her career, Chief Downey was working on the line as a firefighter when they responded to a house fire. The home owner stood outside screaming at the firefighters that her kitten was still inside.

Downey and her partner were in charge of search and rescue so they went in looking for the kitten. They got word that the kitten was in the garage so they found the garage and went in for the rescue.

To their surprise, they found a cat — but it was no kitten… It was a full-grown lion!

The two scrambled back to safety and figure out a plan to open the garage door without losing any hands or feet to the distressed “kitten.” They were able to open the garage from a safe distance and let the lion escape the burning home. Crisis averted and a lifelong memory was created for Chief Downey and her partner.

Another story has stuck with Chief Downey throughout her career and she will not soon forget it… Her unit was dispatched to a pediatric drowning on Christmas morning when the parents of a 2-year-old boy found their son unconscious.

When Chief Downey’s unit arrived, the child was in full cardiac arrest.

The child had on his Christmas pajamas and while his parents were making breakfast, he wandered off and fell into the pool.

They began with CPR, administering advanced life support shortly thereafter. They were able to get a pulse on the child on the way to the hospital and after a couple of weeks in the hospital, the he was able to make a full recovery.

The family sent a thank you card to Chief Downey’s shift with a family picture on it. The family picture was taken before Christmas and it featured the young boy, in the same Christmas pajamas he was wearing on that fateful Christmas morning.

Chief Downey still has that card, more than 20 years later.

She and her team know that they were able to make a difference in that family’s life forever. That is something they will never forget.