Vacaville Fire Department names Mindy Simpson as its first female fire captain
VACAVILLE (CBS13) - A firefighter in Vacaville is making history in her new role.
Fire engineer Mindy Simpson is making history in the Vacaville Fire Department.
"I normally drive a 42-foot truck," she said.
She's quite literally switching gears as she promotes to become the city's first female fire captain.
"It's really exciting. I've been working for a really long time at it just to have the opportunity to move into a new role. You know, it's really exciting," she said.
A Stockton native, Simpson's fire career has so far spanned 29 years, but her firefighting roots run even deeper. Both her father and grandfather were in the fire service.
"I grew up in the fire service, so I always knew that it was available for me to do, but a lot of young girls don't even know that it's an option," she said.
When she turned 18, she began her work on the fire lines with the California Department of Forestry and now, Cal Fire.
After completing her fire science degree, she moved to Vacaville where she's been putting out fires for 25 years. In 2010, she became the city's first female firefighter engineer.
"I did take your engineer spot when you left in 2010, and now I get to take captain's spot for ya, that's pretty awesome," she said.
When current captain Steve Lepera retires in November, this mom of four will be stepping into her new role as captain where she hopes to inspire a new generation of passionate firefighters -- men and women alike.
"It's pretty cool but, I want to really stress that I want to be the best captain I can be," she said. "I don't want to be known as the woman captain, I want to be a good captain."
