MARY WISNIEWSKIAssistant Living Editor
All firefighters may put fires out, but not all firefighters have a theme song.
Justin Timberlake’s “My Love” keeps Pepperdine volunteer firefighter Amante Bartolome going, but that is not the only music that moves him. This 21-year-old said he likes to dance to most tunes. Of course, Bartolome knows more than a good song and dance number.
The Pepperdine volunteer firefighters were involved in Malibu’s latest fire — they had a crew that assisted in shuttling water to helicopters in Alumni Park as well as set up equipment to safeguard the campus.
To be part of the Pepperdine University Volunteer Fire Division, the college demands all candidates like Bartolome to have a HS/GED, a valid California Drivers License, a current EMT-B certificate as well as a FF-I certificate or FF Academy. They also must be 18 years of age and live within 50 miles of Malibu when applying for the position. Once hired, the volunteers have one shift per week for a 24-hour period. Their residence: a Lovernich apartment in C-block. Bartolome makes up part of the Friday volunteer crew.
“My biggest happiness is working with the guys at my shift,” Bartolome said.
It’s not so surprising that he wants to be a firefighter — some of his family members work in the fire service, and although it is dangerous, Bartolome is not afraid.
“There is no fear because in this job, you have to live it fearless,” he said.
But that doesn’t mean one cannot have humor. Bartolome says, and his colleagues agree, he is the comic relief of his team. His humor even extends to his hair when cut recently into a Mohawk accented with a quasi-thunderbolt shaved into the back of his head.
Chris Otto, 24, joins Bartolome on Fridays and is a senior firefighter.
He, too, fears nothing yet. Otto said he hasn’t been in any close calls to be afraid.
“Things shouldn’t go wrong,” he said. “You shouldn’t second guess.” Instead of living in fear, Otto enjoys what he does.
“It’s the best job I’ve ever had because of the people,” he said. “It’s nice to work with guys who have the same goal — we form a bond.”
Besides his volunteer work, he snowboards, took martial arts for 10 years and also owns a snake.
Nick Loevenguth, 19, makes up part of the Friday volunteer team too. He said he used to tire of something once he became good at it but learning to be a fireman gave him a solution. Now, Loevenguth said he faces a lot of problems with many different answers to keep life interesting.
Loevenguth’s interests are not limited to just fires. He plays the guitar, snowboards and even plucks his eyebrows. He may not fear his line of work, but that doesn’t mean he is fearless. Loevenguth hates rats — a fact confirmed when he woke up one day to one crawling on his face at Pepperdine.
Although Lee Kennedy doesn’t fear rats, he said he can be afraid of the risks associated with the job. During these times, he relies on his education and trusts the people he works with, which gets him through any fears.
Kennedy is no longer a volunteer, but stayed on to become the training coordinator. As the training coordinator he does paperwork and works a more typical schedule than a volunteer. He is also preparing to go to paramedic school.
Kennedy grew up traveling and surfing. He wanted to be a firefighter even as a child, and with time, became more intrigued with the profession.What sets Kennedy apart from the others besides his position is his enjoyment of wearing clean, white socks.
“It feels good to start off my day with clean socks,” he said.
Kennedy sees the volunteers on different days, and says the guys in each shift are bonded.
“They are best friends,” he said.
Entering the base during the Friday shift, this is obvious — Otto, Loevenguth and Bartolome all sat around a table eating lunch together.
These bonds are natural. After all, their program takes at least six months to complete, although some volunteers stay on longer. Upon completion, the volunteers receive California state fire marshal certifications. Their schedule involves everything from training to fire prevention to auto assistance. Otto said they do what they can to keep the campus safe.
“We even change tires,” Otto said.
Although Otto, Loevenguth, Bartolome and Kennedy have different backgrounds, they all said they enjoy the people and work to keep the campus safe.
01-18-2007