Supporting the Mission

My name is Corby Coney, a firefighter from Liberty, NY. This is my testimony to the Everyone Goes Home® Program.

Four years ago, based on the publication of the Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives, our department applied for and was fortunate enough to receive an AFG grant for a Firefighter Health, Fitness, and Wellness program. As part of the grant, we were able to offer our firefighters a full slate of medical tests and screenings giving our department a starting baseline.

There is no greater achievement for an educator than to identify and witness behavioral changes in a student whom you have influenced and educated. If and when that lifelong dream comes to fruition, one can personally acknowledge that in a way, their beliefs, challenges and efforts have come full circle.

In 2004, the first National Firefighter Life Safety Summit was held in Tampa, Florida. What resulted from that summit were the 16 Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives and the Everyone Goes Home® program. When many of us first became aware of the Everyone Goes Home® Program we thought to ourselves, “Bonus!” A lot of us already had a passion concerning firefighter safety and wellbeing.

The community of Lidgerwood has a 26 member, all volunteer fire department. The success of this incident and lessons learned and reinforced are a direct result of this fire department’s commitment to the 16 Life Safety Initiatives and the Everyone Go Home® program.

Everyone’s motivation is different, which is what makes this program great. Spreading your personal motivation really touches the audience. Knowing the message, knowing the mission, and partnering them up with motivation and inspiration, gives you the recipe for courage.

As a career captain and volunteer fire chief, I believe that the Everyone Goes Home® and Courage to Be Safe® programs have changed me personally by bringing the 16 Life Safety Initiatives to the forefront of my thoughts when showing up to work, teaching a probationary firefighter, or encouraging a veteran to think about their actions.

I read your letter in the newsletter and commend you for the 2×4 between the eyes approach to drawing attention to this issue. I suffered from a cardiac related incident this year that I am recovering from. In the long run I believe that the event was a blessing in disguise in that it moved me from the suppression side to the inspection/investigation side.