Lefthand Fire Protection District graduated its second class of firefighters on March 16, 2023 Pictured are from left: David Lindquist, Training Captain for LHFPD, Brad Lillagore, Derick Smith, Conner Awayda, Rae Norwood, Kirk C. Watkins, Bethany Holt-Watkins, Purandar Mukundan, Personnel Captain LHFPD, Chris O’Brien, Fire Chief LHFPD. PHOTO COURTESY OF PHILIP MIHLSTIN[/caption]

The Lefthand Fire Protection District (LHFPD) celebrated the graduation of its latest class of volunteer firefighters on March 16, 2023. With a total of seven graduates in the latest class, the future looks bright for the surrounding jurisdiction, as the department has now graduated two classes since the opening of its new facilities at 900 Lefthand Canyon Drive, Boulder, on December 3, 2022.

The new firefighters are Conner Awayda, Bethany Holt-Watkins, Brad Lillagore, Rae Norwood, Derrick Smith, Kirk Watkins, and Claire Weiner. Weiner will also take over as the new Medical Chief, replacing Claudia Kutscher who is retiring after more than thirty years of service at LHFPD.

The Fire Chief at LHFPD, Chris O’Brien, was on hand to welcome the newest members of the emergency response team. He was grateful for the additions to his staff, and to the firefighter community at large. “For us it’s really exciting to have you folks that are interested in serving your community, and to be able to teach them to better go about that,” he said, “and for them I hope that it’s a great foundation for a long, fruitful career.”

This was the second class that has graduated from the new facilities, and the largest that has graduated from Lefthand’s program. O’Brien commented on the potential future implications of this class. “I hope it demonstrates momentum,” he said, “and that’s really the goal, to create that kind of positive energy and momentum within the community, to get more folks volunteering and helping their neighbors.”

O’Brien sees a bright future for the department and the district, and as the fire season draws near, those newly graduated emergency responders and firefighters will need to put their newly acquired skills to practice.

The Lefthand Fire Protection District’s Spring 2023 Graduating Class

Conner Awayda is originally from Buffalo, New York. “I’m out here in Colorado because it’s a beautiful place to live, and I found out about firefighting a couple years ago and decided to pursue a career in that,” he said. “I love it, it seems like the best job in the world.” Awayda, a Wildland FF 2, is an EMT, and is currently attending the Fire 1 Academy.

Bethany Holt-Watkins is originally from St. Louis, Missouri, and has lived in the Ward, Colorado, area for nine years. She is a Wildland FF 2 and is an NREMT.

Brad Lillagore is originally from Colorado, and he recently moved into Lefthand Canyon. As far as his decision to volunteer he explained, “Getting towards the end of my military career, I’m used to being a first responder, and figured I would pick up where I left off.” Lillagore has served in the Air Force for over twenty years. He is enjoying his time with Lefthand and looks forward to continuing his training and development. Lillagore has completed Fire 1 Academy and is training for his EMR certification.

Rae Norwood is originally from Red Oak, in Central Texas, but claims Austin as her home. “That’s where I spent my formative years,” she said. She’s been in the Lefthand area for about three years. She explained why she joined the fire department, “I wanted to serve my community, there are people here that I care a lot about,” she said. She says it’s been good so far, and she is so happy to be joining LHFPD. Norwood is a Wildland FF 2 and is currently attending the Fire 1 Academy.

Derick Smith is originally from Michigan; he has lived in Colorado for 15 years. He originally moved to Colorado for a change of scenery and has lived in the Boulder area since he arrived. “I volunteered for Lefthand just to give back to my community,” he said, “I live here in the community, and kind of fell in love with the brotherhood and the camaraderie. And … maybe looking to start a career in fire, and kind of go from there. This is the stepping stone for that.” Smith is a Wildland FF 2, is an EMT, and has completed the Fire 1 Academy.

Kirk C. Watkins is originally from Colorado, and his family has been here for many generations. “I am joining Lefthand because I served as a U.S Marine and believe that the skills I learned as a Marine can be put to good use in the emergency response field. And as a native of Colorado, I feel it is my duty to serve my state and its people.” Watkins is a Public Information Office (PIO) team member.

Claire Weiner is originally from Boulder and has lived in the county for her whole life, minus about two years when she worked in public health emergency management. She is an NREMT-B/IV, Wildland FF2, MEDL(t), fire instructor and serves as the EMS Officer for LHFPD, an EMS educator, and the co-chair for the BCFFA EMS Committee. “I came to Lefthand because I love the district and I wanted to work for our leadership team specifically while I started working on my fire certifications.”