With recent retirements, Provo Fire & Rescue experienced many exciting promotions and appointments in 2009. Six new Captains were promoted (see below), FF/Paramedics Chad Chapman and Jeremy Millet were appointed as Engineers, and Fire Captain Brad Adams was appointed Deputy Fire Marshal. Provo Fire & Rescue also hired five new capable and knowledgeable FF/Paramedics. Kevin Bell, Jordan Fielding, Spencer Long, Shawn Beardall, and Chad Chapman joined our department this year.

Captain Justin Headman has worked for the Provo Fire & Rescue for 14.5 years. Previous to his promotion he was an Engineer.  Justin has the reputation of keeping his apparatus in top shape. He follows through with all maintenance issues and his truck is always in excellent condition. He has a good working knowledge of engineering plus common sense, which makes him a valuable asset on emergency calls.

 

As a Captain, he expects a high level of commitment from his men. He sets a good example and uses training as a positive way to teach young firefighters. Justin comes from a strong background of firefighters. Justin is married to Marnie and they have three children.

 

Justin’s father is a retired Deputy Chief at Provo Fire & Rescue and his brother Jeremy, is a Captain currently working for the department. 

Captain Kevin Paxton has been a member of Provo Fire & Rescue for 16 years. He has worked as a Paramedic and Engineer before his present promotion to Captain. He is a member of the SRT Team. He also has special ARFF Training and was a big part of the Provo Airport FAA re-certifications. He is revising our Department ARFF Training SOP’s.

 

Kevin is a very likeable guy who works well with his fellow firefighters.  He has a strong heritage of firefighters in his family. His father worked for the Fire Department for 27 years, retiring as a Captain. He also has three uncles that have worked for a fire department in Salt Lake County. Captain Paxton is married to Melanie and has four daughters. 

Captain Matt Beaudry has been employed with Provo Fire & Rescue for 6.5 years. He worked for Walla Walla, Washington Fire Department before coming to Provo for seven years.

 

Matt is a natural leader. He leads by example. He keeps his men sharp by training on the fire ground and in the classroom. Matt is a talented Paramedic with great patient skills and bedside manners. He also serves on the EMS team and helps keep our SCBA is good working order.

 

Matt attends UVU and is seeking a degree in communications and emergency management. He will graduate in 2010. He also teaches community health at UVU.  Matt has a passion for hockey; he has coached the BYU Club Hockey Team, The UVU Club Team and plays in the Provo City Adult League. He also plays in the annual guns and hoses charity hockey game at the E Center which benefits the Shriners Hospital.

 

Matt is married to Lisa and they have six children. 

Captain Andreasen took his first fire department entry exam with Provo in 1993, when the only requirement was a high school diploma. After the testing process, he realized that a high school diploma and a few college courses were not enough with all those competing for this highly coveted occupation. He decided this was something that he really wanted to do for a career and needed to become better qualified.

 

Stan registered for the next available EMT course and from 1993 to 1998, he continued to take fire-related classes and test with other departments as his job at the steel mill would allow. In the fall of 1998 Stan was laid off from the steel mill, and went back to school full-time and also became a volunteer with Pleasant Grove Ambulance that same year, which allowed him to gain much needed experience.

 

Then in 1999, UVSC was going to begin their first paramedic class which Stan was accepted into and scheduled to start in the fall. However, prior to starting paramedic school, he received a call in the spring of 1999 asking if he was still interested in a job with Provo Fire and after interviewing with the Chief, got what turned out to be the best phone call of his life - a job offer with Provo Fire.

 

In 2000 the department sent Stan to paramedic school at Weber State. He was in the last group to go through Weber’s Paramedic program. After Paramedic school, Stan completed another associates degree and continued to take different Fire and EMS related courses.

 

Over the next few years, he was involved with teaching CPR courses and teaching and helping out with the high school intern program. Earlier this year, Stan was promoted to Engineer and recently was fortunate enough to be promoted to Captain. 

Jeff Wise moved from California at the age of eight with his parents and grew up in Orem, Utah and is a graduate of Orem High School.

 

Jeff started his firefighting career in the spring of 1995 with the Springville Volunteer Fire Department. That same year ,he was hired as a part-time firefighter with the South Jordan Fire Department. In 1998 Jeff was hired full-time with South Jordan and that year he tested for a position as an Engineer with the department and came out number one on the list. Jeff was promoted to Engineer on A Platoon.

 

Jeff was on the hiring list with Provo and in August of 1999 Jeff left South Jordan Fire and accepted a position as a firefighter with Provo Fire & Rescue. Since Jeff’s employment with Provo, he has become a Paramedic, taught classes at UFRA for the RCA, served on the Haz-Mat Team, and was appointed to Engineer. Jeff recently tested for Captain and scored number one on the list and was promoted. Jeff is also currently part of the Training Team for Provo and serves as part of the Utah Valley Metro Special Response Team.

 

Jeff still volunteers in Springville and enjoys serving that community. Jeff loves his family and his jobs. He has been married to his wife Nicole for thirteen years and has four children: Ashley, Tanner, Brayden and Alexis. Some of Jeff’s hobbies are skiing, para gliding, triathlons, fishing, and vacationing with the family. 

Sometimes it’s hard to change seats in the fire truck from Engineer to Captain, but Dan has prepared himself for this opportunity and has gotten off to a good start. A statement made during the promotional process by Dan said, "I always try to learn from the Captains I work for, in the way they conduct themselves in the station, on calls and in the public. I have experienced and learned great customer service by watching my Captains." Dan is starting to put into practice with his own crew the things he learned with his Captains.

 

Dan has just completed his ARFF hot training at SLC Airport Training Center. Provo Fire & Rescue is looking forward to having Dan be a part of the Department's ARFF training team. Dan and two other Captains are in the process of rewriting the ARFF training curriculum. This will provide the entire Department with new and improved ARFF training.

 

Dan is also our Wildland expert. Dan has a lot of experience and training in Wildland Firefighting. Provo Fire is proud to take advantage of his skills and experience in Wildland. Provo's Firefighters are better trained and safer due to Dan's help in this field.