The Things We All Carry

This week offer up my conversation with Andy Pantelis. Andy is the District Four vice-president for the IAFF. For those of you who are non-fire related listeners the IAFF is the international association of firefighters. Andy he was elected to his position in 2016 and he represented the local affiliates at Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and DC.  Andy is also the preside...

Ricky Nuttall is a London firefighter with one hell of a story. On June 14th, 2017, he was dispatched to a structure fire during the early morning hours. That fire turned out to be the deadliest fire in London since world war II. He joined over 250 other first responders to battle the blaze, a devastating blaze at Grenfell tower. Grenfell claimed the lives of 72 residents and injured over 70 more....

Welcome to Episode 71 of The Things We All Carry. It's been a couple months since I put out a call for people interested in doing an impromptu interview. This is another in that series of pop-up interviews. Ryan is a captain with SacMetro in California. He responded to my message and waited patiently as our schedule seemed to never align. Luckily we were able to sit down and record recently. Ryan...

One of the disturbing topics that Robbie and I discuss in this episode is how the insurance company is able to both deny his diagnosis of ptsd and then deny his application for life insurance based upon his diagnosis of P. T. S. D. You know that diagnosis..... they denied he had in the first place? This is but one example of how corporations treat individuals and are free to do as they please. Rob...

Maya Angelou wrote in "Letter to My Daughter".   "I can be changed by what happens to me, but I refuse to be reduced by it." No person sums this up better than Kathy Crosby-Bell in 2014, Kathy experienced a tragedy that no mother should be exposed to. Her son, Michael Kennedy was killed in the line of duty. Michael a Boston firefighter was riding engine 33 on March 26th, 2014. He and Lieutenant ed...

I had the pleasure of speaking to Megan Lautz this week. Megan is a registered dietician and personal trainer. She works for Fairfax county here in Virginia and has her own personal practice as well. She's better known as  @rescue_RD on social media.   Megan has made it her ambition to help first responders with nutrition and the rigors of work in these jobs and shifts. According to her bio and he...

Kim is a paramedic out of Minnesota with 10 years of experience. She started training for and qualifying as an EMT during high school and as soon as she was old enough, she began her career on the ambulance. She has seen more than her fair share of traumas, injuries and illnesses. And she has a distinct pleasure of being called a true black cloud.  Unfortunately, Kim also experienced the horrors o...

Welcome to Episode 66 of The Things We All Carry. This is the second in a series of impromptu pop-up style interviews that I conducted a few weeks ago.  Chris and Dan joined me for a conversation from their firehouse in DC.  32 Engine is based in Southeast DC. And Chris is the wagon driver. Dan is a Lieutenant as well as being a member of his department's peer support team. Dana and I have interac...

Chris Torres is a firefighter with FDNY owner of IGY6 Fitness out of New York. He's also a peer support counselor for Next Rung, as well as Vice President and board member of Next Rung. Chris was generous enough to spend about 90 minutes of his valuable time talking to me and sharing his story.  He was born and raised in New York city. He also played collegiate baseball in New York city. And then...

Welcome to episode 64 of The Things We All Carry. I was doing some work for the show a couple of weeks ago, when an idea came to me. I had read about a pop-up farmer's market and thought the idea could be applied to an interview. Instead of planning out a show by speaking to and interview a guest prior to recording, why not do an impromptu pop-up style interview. Go into an interview, not knowing...

Leadership and mental health are very separate, yet related issues in and around a firehouse.  A good leader will have his or her finger on the pulse of a crew, have the ability to recognize ups and downs. Notice what is, and isn't normal for someone. Foster an environment and an atmosphere that allows for a crew member to express issues and ask for help. A good leader can also help develop mental...

Welcome to episode 62 of The Things We All Carry. Today, I'm joined again by Kristie of Sweary Therapy. This is our third episode and she's becoming somewhat of a regular on the show. Her previous episodes are numbers 15 and 30. Kristie is a licensed mental health therapist in the state of Florida. She isn't your typical staid and starch therapist.  She's coming at you with blue pink or multi-colo...

Welcome to episode 61of The Things We All Carry. Few words can strike fear, like the word cancer. The adage is that it will touch everyone's life at some point. That's never been truer for me. As I sit here writing today, I have my own mother foremost in my mind. She's put up a Valiant and brave fight over the last few years  after being diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. Her spirits never see...

Doug is a retired assistant chief from the Heartland of America. He spent the majority of his career as a paid guy in a volunteer system. He brings a unique perspective to the show as he's been out of the game for seven plus years now. Mike sent me an email to mystory@thethingsweallcarry.com a while back.  It caught my eye because it wasn't a typical response that I get his subject matter was the...

Today we set out to discover what happens when you put four podcasters in one room with four microphones. I can tell you it's a little bit of controlled chaos. It was just about a year ago today that I met TJ when he drove to Virginia to meet me and record an episode for this idea. That conversation was the first interview I ever held for the things we all carry. Little did I know that we would st...

Welcome to a bonus episode of The Things We All Carry. During the past three episodes I have given the microphone over to Bryan. Bryan, as you may recall, is a retired fire captain with over 34 years of service. He and I spent four plus hours recording his story and his thoughts . One day, after we recorded what we both thought was our final part, Bryan reached out to me and asked if we could sit...

Welcome to Episode 57 of The Things We All Carry.  TodayI bring you the final part of my interview with Bryan. In the previous episodes, Bryan discussed various calls and traumas and effects from both of them. From the graphic and all to real calls he ran as a volunteer to experiencing the worst day of firefighter can have.  Bryan discusses his realization that his career has taken a toll on him,...

In this episode, we discuss the line of duty death of Kyle Wilson. Kyle was a firefighter in Virginia who lost his life in a house fire in the early morning hours of April 16th, 2007.  You can learn more about Kyle and his fire by going to YouTube and searching. F L S T P Kyle Wilson. On that fateful morning, Bryan was the officer of the first arriving rescue squad. He and his crew made numerous a...

Today's episode. Is part one of my conversation with Bryan.  Bryan is one of those firemen and fire ground officers. I have looked up to since joining the fire service. He is and was at times a larger than life figure in my department. One of those guys you hear others label a "Fireman's Fireman". Bryan retired roughly 16 months ago after a 34 year career, six is a volunteer and 25 as a career guy...

Kevin hazard is a reporter turned paramedic, turned author. His book, "A Thousand Naked Strangers: A Paramedic's Wild Ride To The Edge and Back" chronicles his experiences as a paramedic in Atlanta. Kevin spent time as a reporter in the city before deciding to sign up for training as a paramedic. Soon he was thrown into the deep end, working as an EMT in the worst parts of Atlanta.  This is a publ...

Today I'm speaking with Rick from  Fifty_11 media. Rick is a former paramedic turned graphic artist. He founded 50 11 after his retirement from the EMS world. Fifty_11's mission statement is as follows.... "Fifty_11 is a brand that stands up and stands out for those who suffer from PTSD every day. We see you and we're here to let you know, you are not alone. Our goal is to bring the conversations...

I sit down with Brad from the Eastern shore of Maryland. Brad is a third generation firefighter with 22 years of service. He started as a volunteer and is now approaching 18 years with his career department. In this episode, Brad details his story of post-traumatic growth by shedding light on the topic of mental health. Today. Brad uses his experience of growth and personal development to help oth...

In episode 51, we sit down with Elijah Yetter-Bowman, founder of Ethereal Films, to discuss their latest film entitled "Burned". "Burned" is a powerful expose on the use of PFAS or "forever chemicals" in our turnout gear. As you'll hear in our conversation, forever chemicals are everywhere, but the concentration levels in items meant to protect us are astounding and disturbing. Elijah's work, alon...

In this milestone 50th episode of "The Things We All Carry," Stack is interviewed by TJ of "Keep the Promise" podcast, who previously shared his story of a coworker's line of duty death. Together, they discuss the host's history, fire experiences, and the future of the podcast. The conversation covers some unconventional topics, including psychedelics. Tune in to this episode to join their engagin...

Welcome to Episode 49 of The Things We All Carry. In this episode, we sit down with Mike, a firefighter/paramedic from Rhode Island with over 20 years of experience in the fire service. Mike shares his story of struggles with mental health and the challenges he faced on his journey to becoming a Lieutenant. Mike's journey is one of resilience and determination. Despite the obstacles he faced, he w...