Marquise Waller recently graduated with his Firefighter I certification from the Delaware State Fire School’s Fire Academy, where he learned structural firefighting, vehicle rescue, and hazardous materials mitigation. He joined Brookhaven Fire Company as a junior firefighter in 2022, and when he turns 18 next month, he’ll officially be an interior firefighter.
Marquise lives close by and would often see Brookhaven going on calls. After looking at their website and social media, and seeing the posts of all the guys together, he wanted to join and see what it was all about.
“My favorite thing about Brookhaven is the people. They really make it a great place to be,” said Marquise.
Marquise said the junior program is great, and he still can participate in all the training drills, with his favorite being search and rescue.
“It really gives you hands-on experience of what firefighters go through when searching for someone, and there’s a lot of smoke, making it hard to see,” he said.
His advice to any new junior volunteers is to “Stick with it. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. You always have a mentor and someone to talk to you.”
In addition to graduating from the Fire Academy in June, Marquise graduated from the Chester Charter Scholar Academy. In August, Marquise will start an EMT certification course at Christiana High School in Delaware, which is offered through its HOSA Club and is in partnership with Minquas Fire Company.
Volunteering at Brookhaven Fire Company has given Marquise the passion to make a career out of serving as a firefighter and EMT.
Brookhaven Fire Company provides training and gear to all volunteers. No prior experience required to join. To learn more, visit www.JoinBrookhavenFire.org.