More Than 800 Firefighters Attend Weekend Officers School in Owensboro

In Owensboro over the weekend, more than 800 men and women convened at the convention center to learn advanced techniques through the Bryant Stiles Officers School hosted by the Green River Firefighters Association.

“What this allows is for the firefighters to come in and get some advanced leadership training in how to manage a fire scene, how to recognize PTSD, suicidal tendencies amongst emergency responders [and] how to build a successful training program,” said GRFA treasurer Pat Thompson.

“It’s programs you don’t normally get on a weekly [or] monthly bases at your local fire department.”

The event featured a total of 31 classes over the three-day event.

“They’re great classes,” said Eva Antee, a firefighter from Hopkinsville, KY. “You learn a lot from them, and they’ve got some great instructors.

“I’m glad they’ve continued with these classes all these years because you do learn a lot.”

The Green River Firefighters Association has hosted the seminars from close to three decades but moved the event from Owensboro in 2009 when the Executive Inn closed.

“We moved it to Lexington,” said Thompson. “But when the convention center opened back up, we’re not in our fifth year back here at the convention center.”

Thompson says most of the firefighters are from Kentucky, but the school also sees men and women from Illinois and Indiana back the trek, as well as from Tennessee and West Virginia.

“All of our instructors come from nation-wide,” said Thompson. “We have some from Rhode Island, Louisiana, California, and Florida. We have instructors from all over the country.”

Antee says she’s hoping to learn more about being a safety officer and making sure her firefighters are going and returning safely.

“I love helping people,” she said. “We need more people out here to help others and show that we care.”

Antee adds that it’s important to continue to train.

“We don’t know everything,” she stated. “Each class that we go into, we do learn more. I’m very anxious about learning more and I wish other people would take consideration and doing the same thing with helping people.”

Thompson also says that one area that is getting more outside attention when it comes to firefighters is cancer awareness.

“It’s not new to us, but it’s newly recognized,” said Thompson. “Cancer awareness has been a big topic.

“Things are being made different now. It’s not all wood anymore its plastics. So, our firefighters are being exposed to more harmful chemicals and things that are in the fire, so we’ve got to learn ways to better take care of ourselves.”

When it all comes down to it, Antee says she sees all her fellow firefighters as a family.

“I look at them like we’re all family,” said Antee. “We should all stick together. You learn from them as well because there’s a lot of them that are more experienced than some.”

Thompson notes, the Green River Firefighters Association are already working towards next year’s convention.

“People love coming to Owensboro,” said Thompson. “When we came back five years ago it was tremendous that the city and county built [the convention center].

“When you have thirty-something classes offered and you’re trying to tie down instructors and nailing them down and get them here, you’ve got to start planning events so we have discussed things that we can do better than we did this year and what we’re going to keep for next year and what we’re going to add.”