Max Maron from Stamford is a senior at George Washington University and will be graduating this August. Maron is majoring in international security and minoring in emergency health services and would like to work in the field of emergency management and emergency preparedness. Since he was 16 years old, Maron has been a volunteer firefighter for the Belltown Fire Department, which is one of the five volunteer fire departments in Stamford that work alongside the Stamford Fire Department.
“Every little boy wants to be a firefighter as a little kid, and some just don’t grow out of it,” responded Maron when asked how long he had wanted to be a firefighter.
Michal Cohen, daughter of Rabbi Daniel and Diane Cohen, also of Stamford, recently graduated from Lincoln Technical Institute, a trade school in Queens. Cohen also graduated from a school in Israel for homeland security and counterterrorism. She is looking for an electrical job involving security equipment, fire alarm panels, security cameras and more. Currently, Cohen is an active firefighter and volunteers during the week for the Belltown Fire Department.
When Max was 16, his father, Jeffrey, took him to the Belltown fire station one afternoon. They explored, learned and got the information Max needed to join. Max worked on nights and weekends throughout high school, despite his commute into New York City for school. When Max turned 18, he was able to take the Firefighter I class, which enables you to go into a burning building. Max mentioned how lucky he felt to have supportive family and friends. Specifically, Max said he doesn’t know if any of his success would have happened without his father, who has been by his side the entire time and doesn’t get upset when Max has to leave in the middle of dinner when his pager goes off.
Max made the decision to answer emergency calls even on Shabbat because he feels saving a life, pikuach nefesh, is more important than anything else. However, Max did mention that the department is understanding of those who do not wish to answer calls on Shabbat or other religious holidays.
When Michal was finishing school and looking for a job she was unsure what to do with her time. After speaking to a friend, Michal’s father suggested she become a volunteer firefighter. This was the first time Michal ever thought about becoming a firefighter. Despite that, she filled out an application and a month later she was voted into the department. Then, Michal had to memorize everything on the fire trucks, take a Firefighter I and II class, and partake in drills at the fire station, as did Max. When Michal officially became a firefighter, her family was very supportive, and they still are, but they are also nervous. Michal is not on call on Shabbat, and because her gear is thick and bulky, she can wear the uniforms given rather than a separate one with sleeves below the elbow and a skirt below the knee.
Both Max and Michal underwent the same rigorous process to become a volunteer. Part of being a firefighter is required training and drills such as medical training, ladder training, basic drills and more. They both mentioned how the uniforms are rather heavy, so they make sure they stay in shape physically to do the job. Michal mentioned how she practices taekwondo twice a week, rides her bike, and participates in other various activities. Even though being a firefighter can be risky and often difficult, both Max and Michal love volunteering. Michal enjoys learning new things, challenging herself, the adrenaline rush, helping people and the close community at the fire station. Max spoke about how much he has learned as a firefighter, and stressed that he loves doing something that has a “tangible impact” on his community and friends around him. Max likes knowing that he actively helps the people he lives with in his neighborhood. He also enjoys the tight-knit community at the station. In fact, his parents sometimes joke about which is his real home: the fire station or his family home?
Both Max and Michal gain great personal satisfaction from volunteering as firefighters. Michal says the best thing she has learned is how coming together as a team is what makes the department run smoothly, as “no one person is more important than the next.” Max says that being a volunteer firefighter is the “best decision I have ever made.” They both have learned how to push past their comfort zones, work under pressure and prioritize this commitment.
Saving a life, a tenet of Judaism, is a duty that both Max and Michal perform with great pride.
Julianne Katz is a rising senior at BCHA and a summer intern at The Jewish Link.
