FIREFIGHTER SUCCESS PODCAST

David Hesselmeyer started in the emergency services in 1997. He holds certifications such as North Carolina Firefighter Level II, Advanced Firefighter, Rescue Technician, Hazardous Materials Level I Responder, EMT-Paramedic, Executive Emergency Management Coordinator, and Certified Emergency Manager.

Currently David volunteers with Buies Creek Fire Rescue as a Firefighter/EMT, is an adjunct instructor at Campbell University in the Homeland Security program, and speaks at state and national conferences. David is also a contributing writer for the Carolina Fire Rescue Journal and Fire Engineering magazine. 

Lastly, he is the President and CEO of On Target Preparedness, an all hazards emergency services consulting company located in North Carolina.

Learn more at OnTargetPrep.com. 

Jared Vermuelen is a captain with Boca Raton Fire Rescue in Florida where he has served for over 15 years. He is a first generation firefighter that entered the fire service in 2007 after working as a paramedic for a local ambulance company and hospital. Jared Specializes in hazardous materials, rope rescue, trench rescue, confined space, and heavy extrication as a part of his department’s regional hazmat team for Boca Raton and Palm Beach County. 

Jared is the author of the book “The Modern Fire Officer,” which is intended to help officers create healthy crews and prepare for the many challenges they will face throughout their leadership.

Learn more about him and his book at ModernFireOfficer.com

Arjuna George is the author of “Burnt Around The Edges, A guide to Mastering Stress and Surviving Burnout.” He retired in 2021 as the Fire Chief for Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue after 24 years of service.

Chief George is a trauma-informed resilience coach and T.R.E.® Provider specializing in performance coaching for burnout prevention and recovery for fire chiefs and fire leaders. 

He is a family man, entrepreneur, and author with a passion for helping others lead healthier and happier lives. 

Learn more at his website: BurntAroundTheEdges.com

Ryan Rodriquez is a firefighter/paramedic who has been on the job for 16 years.  He is the founder of IGNITEd, a company where he provides public strength training and nutrition coaching services as well as private leadership and teamwork consulting services. Ryan also hosts the IGNITEd Firefighter Podcast, where he talks about all things fire service related in order to help his audience deal with the mental, physical, and emotional stressors of the job.

Ryan’s new book is called “Own It! Build a Fire Service Culture of Trust and Integrity Through Accountability.”  You can learn more about his book and listen to his podcast at IgnitedFF.com.

Jesse Quinalty is a Master Instructor and the owner of Red Helmet Training in Southern California which houses four classrooms and a command training center. He specializes in Company Officer Training as well as table top and digital fire simulations. He is a Captain with the San Bernardino County Fire Department working in Battalion 10 and was the Operations and Training Captain at his previous department.

Jesse has authored several articles in fire service magazines and has recently published a book titled Rescue Me: Strategies and Tactics for Employee Fires. 

He has presented at several conferences including the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC), Firehouse World San Diego, Firehouse Expo Nashville, Fire Rescue International (FRI), Fire Shows West – Reno, Fire Rescue South Carolina and the Virginia Fire Rescue Conference.  

Lastly, he is the producer and host of the monthly video series “Firefighters in Fire Trucks getting Ice Cream” and “The Firefighter Book Club.”

Learn more at RedHelmetTraining.com and FirefighterBookClub.com.

Chief Curt Isakson is a 30-plus year veteran of the fire service, with experience working in volunteer, career, and combination departments in urban, suburban, rural, and countywide settings.

He is currently a battalion chief for Escambia County Fire Rescue in Florida where he has worked for the last 21 years. Before his time with Escambia, Curt was a Company Officer with the Pensacola Fire Department assigned to Heavy Rescue 31 for 9 years.

Lastly, he is the founder of County Fire Tactics, a go-to resource for firefighter training. With popular conferences such as Water on The Fire, High-rise Operations, Command Officer Bootcamp, and THE Fire Conference coming in 2023, County Fire Tactics is making a huge impact on the fire service.

Learn more at CountyFireTactics.com

John Cuomo is a firefighter and paramedic, author and owner of Wild Bull Media, Inc. With over 20 years as a firefighter, John is passionate about the fire and police communities and the service they provide to our country. In his career, John served as a driver/engineer, lieutenant, and captain and stepped up as EMS chief, battalion chief, and training chief. 

John is currently working on a new book about PTSD and mental health within the fire service, a subject he considers a priority. With more advocacy, John hopes to reduce the stigma associated with PTSD. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he now lives in Florida with his wife and children.

Learn more at FDLeadership.com. 

Josh Wells is an Arizona native who has been a firefighter for nearly two decades. He currently serves as a captain for the Sedona Fire District.

In 2010, Josh took his first promotional test for captain and failed miserably. He was discouraged after this loss, but this set him on a quest to find a path to promotional testing success.

In 2016 Josh placed #1 on a captain's test and was promoted shortly thereafter. After his promotion, Josh helped many other firefighters reach the top of their promotional testing lists. Josh refined this system and published “The Promotion Playbook” in 2020, which reveals a proven path to promotional test success.

Josh is happily married to his wife, Faith, and the couple enjoy raising three great kids. 

Doug Mitchell is a captain in the New York City Fire Department with 30 years of fire experience, the last 23 being with the FDNY. 

He is a principal member of the NFPA 1400 committee and co-authored Fire Engineering’s “25 to Survive: Reducing Residential Injury and LODD” in 2013 with his fire service brother Dan Shaw. Make sure you go back to episode 50 of the Firefighter Success Podcast and check out Chief Shaw’s popular episode.

Doug also has a Bachelor’s degree from University of MD Baltimore County and resides in Orange County NY with his wife and three children. 

Julian Serrano is a firefighter with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue in Florida. He is passionate about mentorship, leadership, training and firefighter fitness. Early in his career, he decided to take ownership of his fitness, losing nearly 100 pounds. Since then, he has become a Florida Smoke Diver and ultramarathon runner. 

Since the last time he was on the Firefighter Success Podcast, Julian created Prepared to Fight Fire, an intense 8-week fitness program which helps aspiring firefighters get physically and mentally prepared for the job.

To sign up and get a FREE Firefighter Success book, go to PreparedToFightFire.com/FirefighterSuccess