CHANGING THE FACE OF BOULDER FIRE-RESCUE
Firefighter Lexi Robbins sits for an interview shortly before meeting with a class of kindergartners at Boulder Fire Station 4 on Dec. 5. While the field trips may include various lessons, Robbins’ main message for the kids is, “be you and do what you want to do.”
Robbins said growing up she never saw firefighters who looked like her. Raised in Aurora, Robbins recalls the support she received from a firefighter the day of her grandfather’s death.
“It started when I was about 11. My grandfather died and I remember it was kind of just a sad day for everybody,” Robbins said. “A firefighter came up to me and gave me a hug and offered that comfort and looking back at it, it was a sad day but, I will always remember what he did for me and how he made me feel. I thought, ‘I want to do that for someone else someday.’”
Today, Robbins, 26, is one of 10 women in the emergency response sector of Boulder Firerescue, according to Boulder Fire-rescue spokeswoman Jamie Barker. In July 2021, The Daily Camera reported that Boulder Fire-rescue employed only five women firefighters following the retirement of Battalion Chief Carol Brown — the first female battalion chief in the department. Over the last couple of years, the department has been pursuing the goal of having 25% of its force be women by 2030. Currently the department employs 110 firefighters in the emergency response sector — with about 9% being women.
Division Chief Jenna Steege, 39, started at Boulder Fire-rescue two years ago is reportedly the highest-ranking woman in the department’s history, and while she said she’s received
nothing but support at Boulder Fire-rescue, she’s previously had to leave a different department for gender discrimination.
Steege recounted a lead instructor from her academy years who said women belonged at home cooking and cleaning, but for Steege said this just made her want to prove him wrong even more. When she started in the fire service academy, she was the only woman in a class of 20 people.
“It’s changing for sure,” Steege said. “When I started there were not many women doing this. That was a struggle.”
Steege, who became a firefighter at 17, described her female predecessors at the department as “badass.”
“There were just a couple who came before me, that really paved the way for the rest of us following behind them,” Steege said. “But that’s definitely not a factor with Boulder Fire. This is the one place, and it probably sounds cliché, but this is the one place that I have worked where overwhelmingly it doesn’t matter the background you came from, whether you’re male or female, ethnicity — that’s not a factor at all.”
Steege is the division chief of all things Emergency Medical Services — which is considered even more prominent given that 80% of firefighter calls are medical. Under her command, she oversaw the transition from EMS Basic to Advanced Life Support, widening the medical resources available to responders.
“It’s been a long road to chief,” Steege said. “Chief isn’t something that occurs easily, that’s for sure.”
Steege said she’s looking forward to the day when she won’t be the highest ranking female chief, but just a chief. Similarly to Robbins, Steege’s advice for kids is no matter your gender or background “you be you. You’re going to do awesome things.”
While Steege has been a firefighter since before she could vote, other firefighters left their careers later in life to join the service. Firefighter Jaime Baker, 40, was previously a school secretary which she dreamed of being as a child. However, after her brother became a firefighter, Baker thought, “I want to do that.”
“I’m loving it here,” Baker said. “I’m so grateful for my past opportunities and everything I did in my past. I think it’s really helped me understand people better, understand how to work with people, understand how to work with a team — having been able to do a lot in the education system.”
Baker said she’s felt very supported in the department and has faced little adversity throughout her career due to her gender. To Baker, the only differences between her and her male counterparts are their biological differences.
“There are very, very strong women in the fire service and there’s not a lot of differences in the strength but sometimes in the way we do things,” Baker said. “For example, women are naturally really good at using our core to move things whereas a lot of men will use arm muscle to move things.”
Baker said since joining the fire service she feels as though she gained more brothers through her “fire family.” Together Baker said the crew ensures they are in “tip top shape, ready to go” — which includes having up-to-date and clean equipment as well as a strong mindset and physique.
“You’ll see ‘pride, integrity and professionalism’ on the doors of our vehicles, above a lot of the doors as we leave the stations, and those values are something that all of us really take to heart,” Baker said.