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Veteran's Affairs Plus discusses the issues that veterans in Las Vegas deal with on a daily basis. Your host, David L. Washington connects listeners with relevant community resources and information that they need to help veterans or themselves.
Unknown Speaker 0:00
You're listening to locally produced programming created in KU NV studios on public radio K u and v 91.5.
Kevin Krall 0:11
You're listening to special programming sponsored by making moves life coaching services. The content of Veterans Affairs plus does not reflect the views or opinions of public radio K, u and v. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.
Outro Song 0:42
You can see what's going on what's going on? What's going on?
Unknown Speaker 0:56
Good morning, Las Vegas. This is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5, jazz and more. I'm Dave Washington. Your host started out with a couple of quick announcements, birthdays this month. In fact, I forgot to mention KJ last month. One of my grandson's, but son Vernon Ray, we call him Ray Ray. His birthday is this month and grandson David the second he will be celebrating as well. So, happy birthday to my son emigrants. I am pleased and honored to have two colleagues in the studio today. They are no strangers to our community. Veterans Affairs plus on any 1.5 Jas and more. We are just so pleased to have fire chief Jeanne Campbell, and fire chief Bertrille. Washington. Gentlemen, how y'all doing? Great, David, how
Unknown Speaker 1:48
you doing? Doing well doing? Well.
Unknown Speaker 1:49
Jean? I know you've been here before, but for the sake of our listening audience, please tell them what branch and how many years you serve in the military. Yes.
Unknown Speaker 1:57
So I was an E for books art. And for those who remember back when used to call them books, artists. And I was in the United States Air Force, sir five years as a security police men. Cuckoo.
Unknown Speaker 2:11
Each of you guys, certainly fire service veterans. So Burt, we'll go back to you now with give us a little rundown on your career, if you will. Sure.
Unknown Speaker 2:22
Well, I'll tell you what, what's interesting is I'm coming up on basically at 28 and a half years in the fire service. And I didn't know if I would do 20. But I was fortunate enough to be hired right here for the city of Las Vegas, served as a fucking firefighter upon hire, and, and transitioned into training. I worked in training for quite a while and also served as a captain in training and in the field. At the fire stations. I was a hazardous materials technician. And a firefighter pair paramedic also also went on to become a battalion chief. And then an assistant chief appointed by this gentleman named Dave Washington, all of those ranks as a matter of fact. And then I transitioned after 16 years with the City of Las Vegas to be appointed by Virginia Valentine as the fire chief for Clark County.
Unknown Speaker 3:31
Yes, and it was interesting. Virginia came up to me once they say, Dave, did you hear about the conspiracy? No, Virginia didn't. Well, you know, me, you and weakly, who was a councilman at the time when I became fire chief, you guys conspired? So now you guys now you're conspiring now that he's a county commissioner, you're conspiring to get Burt ID as fire chief? Virginian I happen to have breakfast, after I had already talked to her and said, Hey, I'm calling I called her secretary. She said oh, can I get a voicemail for Virginia? She said I don't have voicemail. She don't have voicemail. I'm the voicemail. Is that you? Alright, I'm Dave voice and former fire chief and City of Las Vegas. I'm just calling to endorse virtual Washington for fire chief for Clark County, Nevada. Thank you. That was it. That was a conspiracy. Do you give us some background on you, sir? Well,
Unknown Speaker 4:27
Dave, I started as a person told me that they were hiring at Fire Department at a young airman out of Dallas Air Force Base I heard about on KCP I was riding alone. And long story short, somebody told me that day Washington scanning day Washington used to go see him because he was doing little classes in from pulling holes in front of your house day. 30 I'd be 35 years ago came on as a firefighter and went through four different organizations and retired in 2001, as far as chief of Missouri City, Texas, so I too have run my chance of success and blessing through David Washington. So many thanks to you, brother. Many thanks to the folks in Las Vegas, I had a lot of fun. And reminisce about a lot of the things we did from community piece together to camp, brotherhood camp, sisterhood, all different things, all three of us did together. And so many thanks to you,
Unknown Speaker 5:33
you know, and I remember Jean came up as a cook for camp brotherhood. Gene. I said, Gene, they don't need all that meat not Jason. No, they're gonna get three different types of eggs. And she laid it out. Spoiler man, but it was good for those youngsters to have someone and US period to care. And I know both of you guys, if I remember correctly served as treasurer.
Unknown Speaker 5:58
I was treasurer for many, but I was looking for birds and birds always been bird is always a good treasure. And so you know, Dave, sometimes you call us put us in different roles, but it's just lovely. I asked for it the other day. He was he was a member of the Boulais. I sit here, are you the treasurer? And he says no, gee, I'm the president. I'm not doing that President that budgetary thing this time.
Unknown Speaker 6:23
So give us an indication each of you starting with you, Bert. On your formal background in terms of education. Sure.
Unknown Speaker 6:33
formal background Well, after graduating from Westchester High High School in Los Angeles, my parents moved here to Vegas, and I went away to Howard University. And so I did four years there, I graduated with a degree in political science and a minor in English. And interesting point while I was there, around that time, I had an opportunity to meet at that time, Las Vegas City Councilman Frank Hawkins. There was individual, one of the administrators at Howard. And he said, Oh, you're from Vegas. So you must know Frank Hawkins. Everyone thought I was like, I was born and raised in Vegas, because that was my new residence. And but I've said, Well, no, I don't know. I'd love to meet him. And so I did. And so he's I still consider him a friend today. So yeah, I graduated from Howard University, and then I transition back to Vegas. And so soon after that, I actually started taking classes here at U at UNLV. toward my Master's in Public Administration. As matter of fact, one of my first classes was with Shannon less. And that's how we got to know each other through that class. Yeah, late, Shannon was very loved. So and then I stopped. And so fast forward a few years, when I became an assistant chief of training, and you brought in UNLV, and their consortium to do their capstone research. And so they were going to look at our training plan, I ended up speaking with the dean during that time. And he said, Well, if you want your masters, you better sign up, quit, because the credits that I took would expire after a certain number of years. So I enrolled in the master's program right after that discussion, and completed my Masters of Public Administration here UNLV in this school, actually. Green greenspon And, and that was August of 2010. When I completed my master's, prior to that, or during that time, I was also working on my Associates, and I completed my Associates of Applied Science in fire management at College of Southern Nevada, where I was also teaching at college, Southern Nevada, so I completed that in 2009.
Unknown Speaker 9:22
Great, and I'm sitting here chuckling now to you guys weigh up the gene give his form.
Unknown Speaker 9:27
Okay, Chief Well, I was out there at Nellis and I was just looking to get out of the Air Force and I was thinking today I wish I would have kept my uniform. But when I when I walked out that base on February the fourth 1988 I threw my uniform in the dumpster. I was I was you know, just ready to go out. But you know, sometimes when you're young you do that. But as a young police officer, I use my training I had as a Being a police officer in the military, and I was in Northwest corrections and police officers. So I started my college at Community College of Southern Nevada, I had no formal education. And when I got into community college of the Air Force, for those who are listening, know about that, finished my associate's degree in, in law enforcement. Then, by 10 months, I left the fire that left the police department. My sergeant said I was a trainer and he leaned over and said, Good job, kid, started with the fire department. And after I finished my degree in fire, in law enforcement, phase, my degree in fire management, went on to UNLV to finish my bachelor's in Workforce Education, and then finished up at UNLV with my master's in Educational Leadership. Now,
Unknown Speaker 10:56
I sit here and chuckled. And I know again, we're not on TV. So you couldn't see me laugh, how proud I am of these two gentlemen. And you know, one of the big rumors and you know, people, sometimes when people lie, people start to believe it. They said, I gave these two gentlemen, Listen, did you listen to their formal education. And not only not only do they have formal education, but when I asked them to move in different areas of responsibility within the department, they did some guys, particularly in the fire service, be the black or be a white, they like to stay in operations be with the 24 hour shift. But these guys move to staff level positions, which is a 40 hour work week. That means you go home, you go to work every day, Monday through Friday, but they learn different means and spots and departments divisions within the agency. And that just made them stronger candidates. And I sat on none of the boards that they when they were pursuing various positions within the department I didn't sit on. But did I have the final selection? Yes, I did as as the Department Director, but as you can, as you heard, Las Vegas these guys brought it. So that's why they were promoted and moved up through the ranks. In spite of some of the people being begrudging, because they thought I was doing something, all I did was gave these gentlemen an opportunity and a ticket and ran with it. Now both of you guys are board members with the Carl Holmes executive developing this to Burt, you're the ranking person in terms of the director, because the directors are the ones who I report to and then genes and officer. Like along with me, we're the ones who do the actual work. So explain a little bit about the car homes executive development institute, if you will, and your role in DNA will come to Eugene?
Unknown Speaker 12:45
Sure. Well, I'll tell you, you know, I it's just amazing to think that it's been over 30 years, I believe it's 32 years exactly, that the executive development institute has been in operation. So that's just amazing. Words can't even put into, you know, I can't even explain it with with words. But so what it is, is a week long program where we bring in firefighters from all across the country and abroad. Even from places we've had people from Africa, specifically lately, Donna, the Caribbean, London. So from all throughout the world, really, to come and participate in training. That also is amazing. I mean, it begins as early as seven o'clock in the morning with breakfast. And the reason why I mentioned that is because the staff, the professionals, the leaders, people that are doing the teaching will also come and eat at seven o'clock and that's some of the best time for the learning to take place. And then formal classes start at eight. And it's a four hour session. Maybe it's one classrooms for about four hours, maybe it's two, and then lunch, same as breakfast and as an assembler since and the lunches in the cafeteria of the historically black college and university. And at this time we're at Dillard where we've been, but it we've also had a time at Clark Clark Clark Atlanta, and it started at Florida a&m. So and then we go into an afternoon session, another four hour block. And then we come back for dinner to the cafeteria. And then we go into an evening session which is approximately seven 845 or nine o'clock where we bring in. So we have five different groups, we call them modules. And the first year group, second, third, fourth and fifth year group that take classes separately, but then for the evening session, they all come back together. So a week long program, a program that's packed with a lot of education, information, learning, networking, brother and sisterhood and capped off with a whole lot of love. Great.
Unknown Speaker 15:03
Jean, what would you like to add to that?
Unknown Speaker 15:05
I would just say for those especially that are listening who are veterans, in any branch, the camaraderie that you're looking for sometimes when you go into military is at the high point, EDI, you know, board member, treasurer and, and fire chief Birdsboro. Washington just told you about that morning breakfast and it's the evening sessions when you're sitting out or you haven't dinner, or it's that barbecue that we have, on the opening weekend that really starts to set the tone for the type of family that we want to set. Of course, you have the formal education where you're going to get the classes and where you're going to touch on things from command and control to advanced leadership to meta leadership to our evening speakers, where they come from all over the world. Some of them can be from the government, some of them could be city managers. But it really speaks to the family that's created over the 32 years as people that I've met 32 years they wouldn't I went to second class that are still friends today. And we visited them throughout and we just had one Dave met last night. So that's what I would say a little bit about the experience. My role as second vice president is to really help Dave do what he needs to do. And from time to time I'll get that call. Hey Jean, I need this or I'll see something Bert will do the same to right because we we want to ETL to Excel we want the best for EDA, it sell and so if we see something where we can shore up and make it better, we're going to do that. And I just like special shout out she's not on the call today but to Karla homes are namesakes daughter, she did a phenomenal job this year, coming in as chairwoman of the board. Really coming in with a lot of technology, a lot of things to get out on Twitter, get out on Facebook, we're working on whatever else social media there is to let people know about it. And so for those people who are listening to hey, I'm out of firefight, I'm a veteran, I want you to make sure you check us out. Look at EDI on Facebook, go to Twitter, look for us to come out on tick tock with those short videos of some of the experiences and look for some of the people who might be some of our classmates or instructors from around the country. Whether it be Hartford, whether it be LA County, we are one of our instructors and and longtime students just retired as far as chief, or whether it be anywhere else in the country. When you look at some African Americans, any Americans or women, a lot of them have been through EDI have touched ei in some way or been influenced by ATI. So for those veterans just look at your local media outlets or some of those social media contacts I just gave you even on LinkedIn where you can find myself David and Bertrille. Great.
Unknown Speaker 17:58
Now both of you guys have been longtime instructors. And Bert I don't know Jean and I both have missed one year each. I don't know how many years you've been with with us. Because the three of us We team teach at EDI in fact, last year was my last in the class. No, it's
Unknown Speaker 18:17
not. Last year I showed up.
Unknown Speaker 18:21
I gotta move along me sobered up. Do you remember by chance how long you've been with us? As an instructor?
Unknown Speaker 18:27
Yeah, I've been an instructor for Wow. Yeah, it's it's been a good 26 years. Wow. 26 years, you know, on the on the veterans let gene was speaking about. I think it's interesting to know also that one of our evening speakers was Lieutenant Russell. honoree in a general manner. Yeah, Lieutenant General Russel Honore re who led Hurricane Katrina
Unknown Speaker 19:03
Yeah, he came in response
Unknown Speaker 19:06
and that's the important part right? He didn't lead it from the beginning but he came in and he made it right
Unknown Speaker 19:11
this way. It's so those images picture something and then him having that special nuances tying out a little bit of soul to his command and control.
Unknown Speaker 19:22
So what inspires you guys to continue as instructors because again, 26 years I had no idea but how time flies? Yeah, and you came in? What you must have been a captain. Captain when you came in as an instructor. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 19:36
I'm almost sure there was a picture we got pictures you can prove it before that, but I do know this training right was your first class.
Unknown Speaker 19:46
Yes. But I can't recall if if I was about to make captain or had already made captain you
Unknown Speaker 19:53
had made captain. Okay. And then when you was about to make BC, you wouldn't wear that uniform was that one picture that Did he get his just as silver? versa? I'm not gonna jinx myself. I said, you're gonna get it? He said, No, no, no, I'm gonna wait for the call, which was smart action when you when you consider it.
Unknown Speaker 20:11
So, ya know, the inspiration, I think, comes a couple of different ways. One, mostly from the students and achievements that we've seen them make over the years, yes, I'm sure we can't even measure I wish we could the calls and that we get when the when the promotions Yes, ointments happen. And so when when the students is calling and let us know, or when the students pull our coat before before, during or after the class, to tell us either what they're looking forward to hearing or what they've heard about our class or what they're getting out of our class. So probably, again, the biggest inspiration is from the student. But the other part that I would mention is probably the therapy I think for us too. You know, I think there's times where we go out and we get in front of the class. We know what we're there to do. And, and it's it's therapeutic, I think, for us to be in that situation, be in that school, where there's again, a lot of love, a lot of purpose for being there, and really just just making a difference. Absolutely.
Unknown Speaker 21:21
Before you go Jean, I know. And it was saying again, as we talked a couple weeks prior to getting down here, I gotta get down and recharge my battery. They have no idea and I agree 100% for what they do for us. And I remember Dr. Holmes, he didn't, it wasn't so much that in everybody, not everybody will be come fire chiefs like the three of us did. But if you move from firefighter to engineer, Dr. Holmes was so happy for them, even those who didn't move in rank, but they were doing things to, to move along the goals and objectives of the International Association of Black professional firefighters, with the bclc, the black chief officers or EDS, because we're all about community. And one thing I believe, and this is what we got, and I don't mind putting it out in the open airways, so we can get pray about it. We got to make sure that we bring in good solid instructors who are about service, not about self. And the same thing with our board of directors, because we got to maintain control of this forever, Gene.
Unknown Speaker 22:26
Well, I think Burke checks on it so well. One of the things I see new David, as a as a long time I met David when I was about 26. And I happen to be a little older than that now. Over 30. So my over 35 years I've known David is the passion for the community, passionate for other people. And so a lot of our instructors have the passion. Many of them are still working, take their time off, use their own vacation. And we're working late late nights, in addition to becoming fire chiefs. You just mentioned a net Hope, who is the Fire Commissioner for the fourth largest city in the country, Chicago, who I met here, met at EDI as a lieutenant a long time ago, some 30 years ago. And I say it's the love for people and it's the energy you get also because the energy you get you want to give it back. And so I think that's one of the passions that when you get it from the students, sometimes they motivate you, you learn from them, and they tell you what you need to move forward.
Unknown Speaker 23:30
Excellent, you know, and one of our great losses and he was always there, man. In fact, when I saw him and we we just embraced and we both cried. Chief Jarrell Simon, a straight up superstar. As Jean may recall, when he came he said right in the front, Bert. He didn't try to he was already a fire chief. Like you think 3839 years old, but he didn't come in there like I'm the big bad wolf. But he he embraced what was going on and has been a longtime instructor but he said it was just time and I say man, I understand it's the time when the body says make the move. In fact, when I was getting ready to retire car Herschel Clady called Bob Dylan's call al Nero who you guys know and Dr. Holmes, and last one I call was Herschel and all them what you're talking about you Why are you getting ready to go? I say all each one I'm told me you will know when it's time your body will tell you. And then Herschel said one time I call him when I didn't get a promotion. And Herschel told me get up off your knees you better me. I'm looking for some sympathy, man. He said you you'll be a better man by just preparing yourself better and go for a man don't sit around a sniffle about it. Get busy and that's what I did. So, again, I'm proud of you guys, man as we get ready to close it out of your closing remarks. Each of you
Unknown Speaker 24:57
Yeah, I think You know, we want the people to know, you know, think about why we do what, what we do. And, you know, so what we try to make sure is that it's a level playing field, we want to help, you know, African American men and women come into the fucking fire service, and and promote as high as they would like to. But then just thinking about a little bit deeper, why did we do that? And it's really about the community that we serve. I mean, so long ago that EDI part of what we talked about was making sure that the fire departments reflect the communities that they serve. Well, why, why is that because that's how you can best serve the community. Right? If you don't know the community is very difficult to serve at the highest level possible. So I just want you know, people in the community to know that not only if they want a job in the fire in the fire service, this career is here for you. But also for I think, leaders throughout the community, right, in any career field, that you can make a difference in the community that you serve. And it really it's incumbent upon you to do that. So thank you day for having me here. I'm so glad that we had this opportunity to thank Las Vegas for really getting me started in this career and being such a big part of my life, the 20 years here, and look forward to being on the show again, coming, Xena.
Unknown Speaker 26:27
You know, Dave, sometimes I can be short and sweet to the point and so I was just thinking about something I heard. Which is, you gotta love people to serve people as Tavis Smiley And so David I see that loving you I've seen it from when I first came here so I want to thank you man, Lord it somehow put people in your in your life to help make a difference. Sometimes it's for just an event, or a short time and sometimes it's for for a lifetime. So my hat's off to you brother, brother verte. It's been so fun meeting which you purchased a few years younger than me, but seems like as we get older, we get closer and closer. And he's gonna be the big brother here pretty soon, but I really appreciate him. Las Vegas, I love you. I always enjoy doing things out in the community. I look forward to continuing doing those things. And, and I live here now after I retired and I've always had my pleasure. So I look forward to giving back. Thank you, Dave.
Unknown Speaker 27:25
Great. And I want to just shout out Spike Jones, who we talked to yesterday because we know he's in a battle. So pray for that brother. He's a good man. He's one of our premier instructors on assessment center process. So this is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5, jazz and more. I'm Dave Washington. We will see and talk to you next week. Thanks gentlemen. I appreciate you guys very very much. Very proud Thank you.
Unknown Speaker 27:50
Thank you all right.
Outro Song 28:26
All the smoke in the tilde Hey, when they stay all the way
Transcribed by https://otter.ai