Lakeside Fire Promotes New Captain

Lakeside, CA -

At the Lakeside Fire Protection District Board Meeting on Tuesday, January 14, 2014, Lakeside had a badge pinning ceremony for the department's most recent promotion.  The district has recently promoted Firefighter / Paramedic Eric Stamm to the position of fire captain.  In the ceremony, Fire Chief Andrew Parr, in front of a large crowd of citizens in attendance at the board meeting, gave some history on the position of fire captain and what it took to achieve it within our organization.  Captain Stamm was presented with his badge and his children pinned it on him for the first time.

Captain Stamm Gets His Badge Pinned by his Children

Captain Stamm has already had a long career in the fire service.  He became an EMT in 1995 and worked as a paid call firefighter with the Valley Center Fire Protection District from 1995 until 1998.  During that time Eric attended paramedic school at Crafton Hills College, after which he was hired with the Barona Fire Protection District in 1998.  In 1999, after a short time at Barona, Captain Stamm was hired with the Lakeside Fire Protection District where he took on many roles including serving as a department training paramedic and as the chair of the EMS Committee for the fire department.

Promotions within the Lakeside Fire Protection District represent much more than time served.  On a department such as Lakeside, which has limited promotions due to the size of the district (4 stations),  promotions are filled based on a list that is established through a testing process.  These promotional tests occur once every two years for each position and have established minimum requirements to take the test based on the position the candidates are testing for.  With the high-driven nature of the firefighters of the Lakeside Fire Protection District, promotional exams are highly competitive affairs with crews studying and preparing for up to a year in advance of the test date.  The tests, though different for each position, entail written, manipulative, and interview components and take several days to complete.  Eric demonstrated that he possess the skills and knowledge necessary to not only fill the position of Captain, but excel in it.  The Lakeside Fire Protection District is happy to have Captain Stamm here in Lakeside to serve the citizens of the district.


Photo and Story submitted by:  Captain/Paramedic Bernie Molloy