Fireside Chats: The Real Stories of First Responders

Caleb Phelps

Before he was the Chief, before the rank, before the responsibility—he was just a kid looking for a seat on the truck. This is the story of everything that happened after. For years, he's been the guy asking the questions. The one behind the mic. The one pulling stories out of other people. This time, the tables turn. This episode puts the host in the hot seat as we dig into nearly two decades in the fire service—from an 18-year-old volunteer kid desperate to prove himself, to the Chief responsible for an entire department. We talk about the moment the older firefighters finally trusted him. The brotherhood that shaped him. The mentors who took the time to invest in a kid who just wanted to belong. The firehouse culture outsiders will never understand, where brutal honesty, dark humor, loyalty, and accountability all live under the same roof. But this conversation goes deeper than firefighting. We talk about leadership and the loneliness that comes with it. The burden of making decisions that affect your friends. The pressure of carrying everyone else's problems while keeping your own buried. The reality that sometimes the hardest calls aren't the ones on the radio—they're the ones you make as Chief. We revisit the night the 2021 tornado ripped through our community and what it felt like standing in its path knowing there was nowhere left to run. We talk about sacrifice, missing milestones at home, raising a family while serving someone else's, and what it costs to dedicate your life to answering the call. This isn't a polished leadership interview. It's a firehouse conversation. The kind that happens after midnight around a scarred-up kitchen table. The kind where stories get told, truths come out, and nobody's pretending to be anything they're not. At its core, this episode is about purpose. About earning respect instead of demanding it. About staying the rookie no matter how many bugles end up on your collar. About showing up when you're exhausted, frustrated, and running on fumes because people are counting on you. The host becomes the interviewee. The Chief becomes the firefighter again. And for a couple hours, the walls come down.

Tyler Crick 09

Tonight on Fireside Chats, we're sitting down with paramedic Tyler Crick. Tyler got his start in EMS in 2020, but the moment that really lit the fire for him happened years earlier during the Bremen tornado. Watching first responders work that disaster scene showed him a side of the job most people never see, and he knew right then that he wanted to be part of it. He started his career as an EMT with ComCare, spending two years learning the ropes and seeing the reality of the job firsthand. Since then he's worked his way up to paramedic with Muhlenberg EMS, where he's handled everything from serious medical emergencies to high-speed pursuit crashes and traumatic scenes that most people can't even imagine. But tonight isn't just about the calls. Tyler wants to talk about the reality of EMS — the parts the public rarely understands. The biggest disconnect between what people think EMS does and what actually happens on scene. The weight of life-or-death decisions. And the difficult conversations that come when families are looking for hope in moments where there may not be any. This job is unpredictable. One moment you're responding to a breathing problem, the next you're standing in the middle of chaos. And that's exactly what drew Tyler to it in the first place — never knowing what the day will bring. So tonight, we're going to pull back the curtain a little bit on EMS and talk about what it's really like on the other side of that ambulance door.

Logan Adams 08

Today's guest is someone who truly represents what the fire service is all about—tradition, grit, and staying ambitious. Logan Adams has been in the fire service since December 28th, 2014. What started as something that just felt right turned into a full-blown career and calling. From a junior firefighter to now serving as Captain at Nelson Creek and Assistant Chief at Central City Fire Department, Logan has built his career through hard work, experience, and learning from the people around him. He's also a certified EMT, Fire Instructor, Fire Investigator, and Fire Inspector—and his journey has taken him through multiple departments before ultimately bringing him back home, where he plans to finish his career. This is a conversation about growth, brotherhood, hard lessons, and what it really means to earn the title of firefighter.

Jared Southerland 07

Some people leave the military and never really come home. Some find another uniform. And some spend their lives learning how to carry the weight without letting it crush them. Tonight's guest was raised in Muhlenberg County. An Air Force veteran. A firefighter, paramedic, instructor, and leader who's worn just about every hat this job can hand you. But this conversation isn't about titles. It's about the moments that shape you— The leaders who teach you what not to become. The calls you don't talk about. The things you see that don't always make sense. And the quiet battles nobody sees when the lights shut off. Jared Southerland has lived the fire service from the bottom up. He's wrestled with mental health, sought help when it got heavy, and refuses to stay silent so others don't feel alone. He's unapologetic in his faith, grounded in humility, and honest about the cost of service. This isn't a highlight reel. This is a real conversation about leadership, brotherhood, belief, and survival. Pull up a chair. This is Fireside Chats.

Eric McElwain 06

Eric McElwain's story is one a lot of firefighters will recognize—long nights, hard calls, and a career built one shift at a time. He started in the fire service in 2000 and worked his way through the ranks all the way to Chief, earning every step along the way. In this episode, we sit down and talk about the sleepless nights that follow you home, the calls that never really leave you, and the weight that comes with responsibility. We don't shy away from the bad ones—but we also laugh about the funny calls that keep you sane and remind you why the job matters. Eric opens up about faith, purpose, and finding salvation in Jesus when life and the job got heavy. It's an honest conversation about leadership, brotherhood, and what it takes to keep showing up when the tones drop. Real stories. Real laughs. Real truth. This is one you don't want to miss.