 My name's Georgie and I'm a firefighter at Camperdown Fire Brigade. I've been a volunteer for 15 years. I joined the CFA through a friend. They were part of the juniors program and they dragged me along one night. I loved it and I've been a volunteer ever since. I'm a paramedic. My CFA journey started a long time before my career as a paramedic but the skills that I've learnt along the way, working with teams, working with people, working in emergency situations, a lot of the team building and personal development, as well as the hands-on skills that I've learnt have all helped me develop my career as a paramedic. I'm a mum as well as a volunteer and juggling my time as a mum and a volunteer and at work sometimes is a little bit chaotic. My husband's also a volunteer with the CFA and so we quite often have to rock, paper, scissors who's turned it is to respond to jobs or show up to training but we've been really lucky. The Brigade is welcomed best with open arms and my daughter often comes to training and meetings. I'd highly recommend parents or people with children looking to join the CFA to consider it. It's a really worthwhile environment and such a beautiful second family and such a lovely environment for your kids to grow up in. Volunteering isn't all about getting on the back of a fire truck of fighting fires. There's so many ways that you can get involved with the CFA even your firefighting's not for you. There's a role for you with CFA. The most rewarding thing about being a volunteer with the CFA is definitely being able to give back to the community. My goal with the CFA is to be part of making a safer and more resilient community for me and my family to live in. For anyone thinking about volunteering but hasn't quite taken the steps yet I'd suggest just step through the front door of your local fire brigade. Everybody has got something to offer the CFA.