LIVE thrive
Empowering Heroes & Saving More Lives
BY AMANDA MILLER
22 FEBRUARY2025 | BRPARENTS.COM As a part of bringing training to the state, the Foundation hosted the first Louisiana Instructors Firefighters Training (LIFT) Conference in 2018, and the conference continues to be held annually. The departments are volunteer-run, making consistent access to training difficult. While FETA at LSU focuses on collegiate- style certifications and recruit training, there are limited training opportunities. However, Kling shares that in states such as South Carolina, there are comprehensive systems in place to provide the necessary training. These systems have served as a model for the Foundation, aiming to provide training locally and make it more accessible. THE LIFT CONFERENCE T he Louisiana Firefighters and safety education to firefighters, first responders, and citizen responders. These citizen responders are especially crucial because they are typically the people who are there in the first few minutes of an emergency. Meg Kling, the media director of the Louisiana Firefighters Foundation, explains, “When you look at the people who are calling 911, administering aid or care in the first five minutes of an emergency, it’s the citizens. So our mission is to essentially prepare everyone for everything.” ROOTS IN TRAINING The Foundation was initially built to address training challenges within the Louisiana fire service. Many fire Foundation supports those who answer the call by providing fire
LIFT Conference is the “cornerstone of firefighter training in the region, bringing together over 400 dedicated firefighters from across Louisiana and beyond.” During the conference, firefighters experience hands-on training, learn from industry leaders, network with fellow firefighters, and witness or compete in the Louisiana Firefighters Competition. However, it’s more than training—it’s an opportunity to build relationships and build a strong community of dedicated firefighters. IN THE COMMUNITY Along with providing resources to firefighters, the Foundation is also “empowering the community to understand what actions they should take to save lives prior to the arrival of public safety agencies.” The Foundation offers a variety of free programs, for tweens and up. Some of these programs include Safe & in Charge: Sitter Superstars, Ready Teacher, Citizen Responder, Prepared Coach, and First on the Scene. Many of these programs cover CPR, bleeding control, addressing emergency situations, and basic first aid. The Foundation has plans to expand its reach even further, providing education to college students on campus who witness an emergency and need a plan. SHOW SUPPORT Helping organizations like Louisiana Firefighters Foundation thrive and showing support for those who serve is important. Kling says that showing support is as simple as liking their social
media pages and attending their local events.
“The biggest thing is to support anything that the fire departments are doing across the state. It’s as simple as liking their social media pages. The more support we get on there, the more our messages get out. Then, more people will see these safety messages, and if one person goes and puts a smoke alarm in their home because of something they saw on Facebook, that’s one less person that’s probably going to be injured in a fire. It comes full circle back to you liking our page, but really, you’re doing that for yourself, because you might save your life,” says Kling. Firefighters are showing up for everything—many things we don’t even realize they would show up for—and they deserve our support. Kling shares, “The calls are not just fires and car accidents. I mean, they’re showing up for everything. Cats in trees are real, dogs stuck in a mattress are real. The water won’t shut off in my apartment and maintenance won’t answer the phone, or my oven’s stuck in locking mode. The amount of times somebody has passed on, and we are the ones that have to tell them because we’re the first ones there…anything and everything, and people don’t always realize that we do all of that as firefighters. So that’s kind of part of the mission here as well—to just get awareness, get support. Support comes in all shades, all colors, all sizes, and it’s just anything anyone can do, it’s all appreciated.” For more information, visit louisianafirefighters.com.
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