Thank you for your interest in the Louisville Fire Department!

We are always looking for motivated men and women to join us in providing the citizens and businesses of the Louisville Fire Protection District with fire protection and emergency services.

The mandatory criteria for becoming a recruit for the Louisville Fire Protection District are:

• you must be at least 18 years of age
• you must be a legal resident of the United States of America
• you must have a valid driver's license
• you must have current automobile insurance, if you drive
• you must successfully complete our screening process
  
  

Preference will be given to applicants residing within the district

(district map), but we will gladly consider applicants living out of district who are able to meet the membership requirements.

Volunteering for the Louisville Fire Department can be one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of your life. You will be driven to find strength and courage you may not think you have, and in turn you will be given the training and opportunity to make a direct and positive impact on people’s lives. You will get the chance to be somebody’s hero.

You will receive training and experience that will mean greater welfare for your families, friends and neighbors. You will make friends and establish a social network made up of the finest people in the community. You will develop stronger ties to the community. Perhaps best of all, you will get to live out childhood fantasies and ride on the big red truck.

If you are interested, you can download an application or pick one up from Station 2, 895 W. Via Appia. Bring the completed application to Station 2 or FAX it to (303) 666-7659.  We accept applications throughout the year for inclusion into our next available recruit class. Highly qualified candidates may be included midyear at the discretion of the Chief.

The 2009 Recruit Class has been selected and they will begin their training on January 1, 2009. The first year will be a fast paced and exciting adventure into the world of emergency services. First up for the new recruits will be to meet their commanding officers and to familiarize themselves with our equipment and the District. Board Member Chris Schmidt will be presenting the recruits a fascinating slide presentation on the history of the City of Louisville and the Louisville Fire Department. The Recruit Firefighter Academy is scheduled to start February 13, 2009. For several months the recruits will be attending classes every Friday evening and all day on Saturday. Once they graduate from the Academy they will be certified as Firefighters by the State of Colorado. Throughout the year the recruits will receiving training in Hazardous Materials, Emergency Medicine, Incident Command, and all the other areas of service that the all hazard Louisville Fire Department provides.

If you would like more information, please explore the links below or call during business hours to schedule a time to talk to one of our firefighters face-to-face.

FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions about becoming a volunteer and about life as an LFD firefighter

After the call – A brief description of what happens after someone calls 911 in the Louisville Fire Protection District, written by Division Chief Shawn Clemenson

Would you like to talk to a current volunteer or the spouse of a volunteer? – We would be more than happy to answer any questions you have. You can send an email with your questions to the people listed below, who represent a cross-section of the LFD family.

Captain Josh Schmidt is an officer and ten-year veteran of the Louisville Fire Department. As the lead instructor for the new firefighter academy, he has a unique perspective on the training you will receive as a new firefighter.  Josh is also a fourth-generation Louisville citizen with a new family of his own. When not volunteering as a firefighter in Louisville, he works as a career firefighter for a fire department south of Denver.

FF Chris Underwood is a probationary firefighter who has been with the Louisville Fire Department for about 2 years. He is a married (see below) father of two and a busy professional that lives and works in Louisville. He is still working on balancing family, work and the fire department, but loves being a firefighter and serving this community.

Sharon Underwood is a hard-working mother of two and wife to FF Underwood. She is very familiar with the added burden of supporting a spouse in making the transition from ordinary citizen to firefighter. She is proud of her husband and excited to be a part of the LFD family.

FF/PIO Shawn Stark - A four-year veteran of the Louisville Fire Department and one of the LFD’s three female firefighters, Shawn Stark is also one of our career Firefighters. She is a 15-year resident of Louisville and mother of two daughters who also is trained as a wildland firefighter and serves as the department’s Public Information Officer, or liaison with the media.