By Frank E. Vaerewijck, The Firehouse Foodie

The radio crackles, the tones radiate through the station. The dispatchers voice fills the air, and the sound of chairs, boots and doors in every direction breaks the silence that was. Diesel engines come to life and roar out of the station. The squeaking and groans of the bay doors closing as the sirens dissipate into the distance, and all goes quiet again in the station. Later the garage doors squeak and groan to life again as they open to reveal their empty bays, and the high-toned beep of back up alarms now pierce the air. The whoosh of airbrakes fill the now full bays.

Life in the Firehouse is much like life in any house. The one big difference is that the monotony of everyday life is broken at a moment notice without warning. Everything comes to a stop, and every ounce of attention, and energy gets focused on the emergency at hand. Once the emergency is mitigated, and the units return, life carries on like it was never interrupted. That is the norm and we are all used to it.

I made this acute observation a couple of tours ago, and honestly found it funny that I never really noticed it before. It was as if someone pushed pause on life and then un-paused it as we walked back into the station once everything was over. If you really thought about it, it was surreal. Conversations were picked back up exactly where they were left off. I returned to what I was doing in the kitchen, and others resumed their tasks right on que. No one talked about the call. There wasn’t much to talk about, and if it weren’t for the report and void in time, it was almost like it never happened at all. Life goes on, more calls get dispatched, training gets done and “That’s Bringing the Firehouse Home!”

EASY CHICKEN SALAD

Easy Chicken Salad is the PERFECT combo of seasoned chicken breast, creamy mayonnaise, lemon juice, crunchy celery, and almonds, ready in just minutes!

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups cooked chicken breast chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup mayonnaise (or salad dressing for a sweeter taste)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 cup finely chopped celery 
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 1 cup halved grapes

INSTRUCTIONS

1.    Mix all the ingredients together well in a bowl and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Frank E. Vaerewijck has had a passion for the fire service that has spanned 20 years. He has been a volunteer and career firefighter and is currently a firefighter/EMT with Smithfield Volunteer Fire Department (yes, where the bacon comes from, THAT Smithfield). He has passed on his passion for the fire service through instruction and mentorship. That same passion he has for the fire service is shared with his love of food. In 2006, Vaerewyck won an Iron Chef-style competition sponsored by a radio station in Richmond, Virginia. That is where he also furthered his education by attending a Culinary Arts Program. As the Firehouse Foodie, he has been compiling recipes to be included in a cookbook that will give others the opportunity to see their hometown heroes not just as firefighters but as the firehouse chefs they truly are. Learn more by visiting www.thefirehousefoodie.com.