Best of the Rest – Stay Hungry, My Ladder, Comics, Hero Rush, a Prank, and Much More!

I am getting back into the swing of things after FDIC. The feedback from our trip has been outstanding. It was great meeting so many Brothers in Indianapolis. We cannot wait until next year.

Daily911Deals.com currently has 3 deals going on. Check them all out here. One of those deals includes the Fire Critic/IronFiremen challenge coin. You won’t be able to get it this cheap for long! Be sure to “like” Daily911Deals.com on Facebook too!

Shoutout – Fully Involved

Fully Involved – Thoughts on Coaching, Leadership, and the Fire Service

Written by Mark VonAppen

Must read post “Stay Hungry”

The keys to success in this venture are strong station leadership and core chemistry.  Strong core leadership ensures that the role players fall in step and comply with the program.  Without strong leadership in the station the new faces – recruits – can easily slide into bad and potentially lethal habits. You don’t have to have a title to be a leader, you can lead up, down or sideways.  Show your fellow firefighters how to be a positive influence from anywhere in the department even if the positional leaders are unwilling or incapable of supporting your efforts.  

Training – This is MY Ladder

This is my Ladder. Written by Brian Brush and found on Fire Service Warrior. I can’t quite do this post justice in a short synopsis…read the post and I guarantee you will learn something new. Unless of course you have already read it, or you are Brian Brush who wrote it.

Speaking of ladders, have you checked out the Ladder Pride available through Firehouse Pride?

Random Tweet of the Week

Some of us have more than one. Don't worry, we have poor grammar too! #nojoke

News and Opinion

NFFF 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb Events. Two events have already been held. Be sure to take part in your first, or another climb this year!

Ride Out Comic is plugging away with fresh new content. Check out their latest to the right. Be sure to check out their web site and follow them on Facebook as well!

Firefighter Dan. For all of you fire safety and education specialists out there, Firefighter Dan is up and running and moving right along. He has added video/lesson #5 to his site via Youtube. Check it out and learn more about Firefighter Dan (web site/Facebook)

20 Questions with Christopher Brennan of Fire Service Warrior. In case you missed this brand new column here on The Fire Critic, be sure to check it out!

IronsandLadders.com is revisiting the past. They are gearing up for a bunch of new material, but want to share some of their favorites and most popular stories from the past. Read it here!

Dave Statter and I to speak in Ohio May 23rd. Ohio Fire & Emergency Services Foundation’s 2012 Leadership Conference. We cover various aspects of social media and the fire service.  Join us in Newark, Ohio for May 23 & 24. Click here to sign up.

Captain Willie Wines Jr. and I will be touring South Dakota and ending up at the South Dakota Firefighters Benefit on September 15th. We will get some mic time at the event, but mostly want to meet South Dakota’s Bravest. Anyone and Everyone is invited. This will be the place to be if you are a firefighter in South Dakota, North Dakota, West Dakota, East Dakota, or Mexico…err whatever is south of South Dakota. We will be traveling from Rapid City to Sioux Falls in a Spartan ERV apparatus and stopping by firehouses along the way. More info: SDFirefighters.com

National Firefighters Endowment

The National Firefighters Endowment is accepting video submissions for a grant process currently underway. Simply create a video, upload it to Youtube, and your department could be the recipient of a $5,000-$6,000 grant from the Endowment. More information here including some tips on creating a decent video submission.  Also catch up with the Endowment on Facebook!

Here are some other must read articles:

Unfortunately, I was unable to make it to Hero Rush (web site/Facebook) this past weekend. I had every intention of participating alongside of my wife, but there were too many obstacles in our own lives that we couldn’t make it. She is nursing a sprained ankle above all the other things going on, so she couldn’t have done it even if we made it there. It appears as though Hero Rush was a huge success. I haven’t heard from anyone who completed it, but I am sure there were many there who had a blast. For those of you who didn’t make it, check out the video below.

Finally, I will leave you with a pretty decent prank…