Dena Ali is a Captain with the Raleigh (NC) Fire Department where she has worked her way up the ranks. She previously served as a police officer for five years. Ali has a degree from North Carolina State University and an MPA from the University of North Carolina—Pembroke, where her research focused on firefighter suicide. As a graduate student, she was awarded the 2018 MPA student of the year. She has also received several awards throughout her career. One that she is most proud of is the NC Office of State Fire Marshal Honor, Courage, and Valor award that she earned in 2018 for her steadfast effort to bring awareness to firefighter mental health through her vulnerability. Dena is an advocate of awareness, education, and understanding of mental health disorders and suicidality. She speaks locally and nationally on these topics and is a QPR Suicide Prevention Gatekeeper Instructor. She has written several articles on topics such as suicide prevention, peer support, wellness, and post-traumatic stress. Dena is the founder and director of North Carolina Peer Support where she helped to develop their statewide curriculum. She is also a founding member of the Carolina Brotherhood, a group of cyclists/firefighters in North Carolina who honour the fallen and their families annually.

Episode 30 - Dena Ali

Find out what Firefighters are made of!

This podcast pulls back the curtain and shows you what goes into the making of a Firefighter. 

We talk about the how and why of each guest's journey to the job, what challenges they have faced overall and how they made it through them, the struggles they see for our service and their ideas on how each of us can help progress in the job, as well as what keeps them inspired and motivated. You will be getting to know your family better. 

'Multiple Calls' is a phrase that catches a Firefighter's attention because it signifies that there is a strong possibility that what we are responding to is legitimate and will require us to be at our best. It is also what experience is made of. We're going to be at our best to capture your attention with legitimate stories and enrich our experience of this unique and amazing job.

I'm a 25-year second-generation Firefighter working for a Department in Southern Ontario, Canada, with around 400 suppression personnel, 13 stations and 26 apparatus. I spent the first half of my career at a Technical Rescue station, six years working as a primary care medic, 3 years instructing as a Fire Training Officer, and had the honour and pleasure of co-leading our Peer Support Team for over a decade.

When I first joined, we were a lot smaller and the Senior Firefighter on the truck with me for my first shift had been on longer than I had been alive. Outside of what he and many others taught me about the job, he recommended that I start a journal of all the calls and happenings around the hall so that one day I'd have the makings of a book. He was right, but unfortunately, of all the things I heeded and applied, that wasn't one of them. The point being, there are stories to tell and we all carry them; about us as individuals, as crews, as platoons, and as a Department. The wisdom and instruction about how to do the job are crucial, but the experiences and stories also help to shape our character and our Fire Family as a whole. Stories are important. Through story-telling, we find comfort in what connects us and expand our minds through our differences. 

I've come late to the party when it comes to podcasts. A move in the summer of 2017 that involves an hour plus commute, opened up the opportunity to fill that time with some quality content. I've been inspired by a number of podcasts and listed the fire-related ones on the Multiple Calls Website in the Resources section along with books, Facebook pages, websites, literature, and videos. You can also find a running list of those in the Fire Service at large that deserve our respect and acknowledgment for their efforts to keep us grounded and progressing, in the Credits section. Please message me if you want me to add someone. 

We get to know each other very well in this line of work. From all that we experience together, we create strong bonds, and we use deeply meaningful words like Family and Brotherhood to describe them. As shift schedules, generations, where we choose to live, our societal norms, and the size of our departments change, our view of the importance and tradition of the Fire Service Family and Brotherhood can be challenged, strained and at risk of being lost. This would be incredibly sad, tragic, and detrimental. We need to continue to invest in each other and learn and participate in each other's stories. 

Much Love,

Scott

Society & Culture

Find out what Firefighters are made of! This podcast pulls back the curtain and shows you what goes into the making of a Firefighter. We talk about the how and why of each guest's journey to the job, what challenges they have faced overall and how they made it through them, the struggles they see for our service and their ideas on how each of us can help progress in the job, as well as what keeps them inspired and motivated. You will be getting to know your family better. 'Multiple Calls' is a phrase that catches a Firefighter's attention because it signifies that there is a strong possibility that what we are responding to is legitimate and will require us to be at our best. It is also what experience is made of. We're going to be at our best to capture your attention with legitimate stories and enrich our experience of this unique and amazing job. I'm a 25-year second-generation Firefighter working for a Department in Southern Ontario, Canada, with around 400 suppression personnel, 13 stations and 26 apparatus. I spent the first half of my career at a Technical Rescue station, six years working as a primary care medic, 3 years instructing as a Fire Training Officer, and had the honour and pleasure of co-leading our Peer Support Team for over a decade. When I first joined, we were a lot smaller and the Senior Firefighter on the truck with me for my first shift had been on longer than I had been alive. Outside of what he and many others taught me about the job, he recommended that I start a journal of all the calls and happenings around the hall so that one day I'd have the makings of a book. He was right, but unfortunately, of all the things I heeded and applied, that wasn't one of them. The point being, there are stories to tell and we all carry them; about us as individuals, as crews, as platoons, and as a Department. The wisdom and instruction about how to do the job are crucial, but the experiences and stories also help to shape our character and our Fire Family as a whole. Stories are important. Through story-telling, we find comfort in what connects us and expand our minds through our differences. I've come late to the party when it comes to podcasts. A move in the summer of 2017 that involves an hour plus commute, opened up the opportunity to fill that time with some quality content. I've been inspired by a number of podcasts and listed the fire-related ones on the Multiple Calls Website in the Resources section along with books, Facebook pages, websites, literature, and videos. You can also find a running list of those in the Fire Service at large that deserve our respect and acknowledgment for their efforts to keep us grounded and progressing, in the Credits section. Please message me if you want me to add someone. We get to know each other very well in this line of work. From all that we experience together, we create strong bonds, and we use deeply meaningful words like Family and Brotherhood to describe them. As shift schedules, generations, where we choose to live, our societal norms, and the size of our departments change, our view of the importance and tradition of the Fire Service Family and Brotherhood can be challenged, strained and at risk of being lost. This would be incredibly sad, tragic, and detrimental. We need to continue to invest in each other and learn and participate in each other's stories. Much Love, Scott

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Episode 30 - Dena Ali

Episode 30 - Dena Ali

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