Sisters EMT/firefighter loves her unusual job

Beth Mitchell.

The year was 1994, and it happened in two quick steps.

First, Beth Mitchell chose Sisters as the place she wanted to live; then, she decided to be a paramedic. She got what she wanted on both counts.

With her many outdoor interests -- snowboarding, rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking, and fishing -- choosing Sisters was the easy part.

In fact, she signed up for her Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) training in order to qualify for a ski patrol job -- something she never pursued after getting a taste of EMT work.

"I just decided it was something I wanted to do," said Mitchell, who started working with the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District as a volunteer in 1995.

The next year she received one of the district's three scholarship positions as a student apprentice.

After completing the two year program, she went on to another two years of study in fire science.

"I got into this primarily for the medical aspects," she said, "but the guys in the department talked me into the fire portion of it; and I'm glad they did. It's a lot of fun."

While she was completing her training, that support led her to work part-time as a wildland firefighter for the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF), where she met her boyfriend -- another wildland firefighter.

With only eight full-time paid positions, the district relies heavily on its 46 volunteers.

When her training was complete last year, Mitchell was able to move into one of those full-time positions and is now the only full-time female firefighter on the staff.

"This job is definitely challenging and throws you for a loop once in a while," she said. "It really keeps you on your toes."

She conceded that there can be some pretty tough days.

"That's what I love about this job, though. You never know what's going to happen from day to day," she said. "You have to be prepared for anything."

Mitchell once heard a quote that she thinks pretty well sums up the job: "It's hours of boredom interspersed with moments of absolute terror."

In spite of the demands, she finds the work rewarding.

"It's pretty amazing -- the support we get from the community," she said. "They're always gracious and very thankful. People are always bringing us cookies and thank-you cards."

A firefighter's schedule can be a rough one.

Like her peers, Mitchell is on duty for continuous 24 hour periods, followed by 48 hours off; but sometimes, circumstances require that those duty days end up being strung together without breaks.

When the breaks do come, they are always welcome. In one of her off-duty moments this past year, she landed a 32-inch Chinook salmon.

But outdoor and extreme sports aren't her only outlets off the job. Mitchell is also an artist. Specializing in oil landscapes, she sketches in charcoal, too.

One unusual -- though not surprising -- piece of her artwork is on display for all of Sisters to see. She painted the Smokey Bear across the street from the Sisters Fire Station on the ODF fire sign.

She loves her job and where she's working.

Still, she recognizes that firefighters eventually get to the point where the physical demands of the job -- like running into burning buildings -- get to be too much. Even so, she says, "I'll always want to continue in the fire business, perhaps get into fire prevention or investigation work."

In the meantime, wherever you are in the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District, Beth Mitchell may be the one who answers your call for help.