“The difference manifests itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make sure that other people’s highest priority needs are being served. The best test, and difficult to administer, is: Do those served grow as persons? Do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants? And, what is the effect on the least privileged in society? Will they benefit or at least not be further deprived?”
Alberto doesn’t talk about leadership philosophies or styles. He does talk about the importance of the fire service embracing diversity and inclusion. Caring and humility illuminate his words, actions, and courteous respectfulness of others.
His story …
“I grew up in Mountain View, California. I have 11 brothers and three sisters. We were a close family then and are today.
“My Little League coach was a firefighter. I was 9, 10 years old at the time. He was just a great man. He cared about everyone. He came in his uniform and when he couldn’t make a game, he drove by in the fire engine.
“My neighbor, who was a friend of my older brother, was a firefighter but always told me how difficult it was to become a firefighter.
“After I graduated high school I went to Foothill College. Being on the wrestling team enabled me to transfer to San Jose State University on a wrestling scholarship. Then I became a father and having to be responsible required my getting a day job—I poured concrete—and took classes at night.
“I decided to take the test to become a police officer and told this to Ruben Torres. He was a firefighter and now is a Battalion Chief here in San Jose. He said to me, ‘You’re taking the wrong test.’ He took me on a ride-along and that was it. I never looked back.
“From San Jose State, I went to Mission College to become an EMT and get my firefighter certification. I volunteered anywhere I could and tested in 12, 13 different cities. It took me two years to get my first job offer from the city of San Mateo. Before their academy started, I got a job offer from the fire department in Vallejo. Six weeks into their academy, San Jose called me. That’s where I really wanted to work. Finally, at age 27 in 1988, my dream came true.”
Having a mentor …
“Ruben was my mentor throughout the whole process. He was a member of Los Bomberos of Northern California. Ruben, along with the rest of the members provided me with training on interview skills; mock orals; all the information that you need to become a quality candidate.
“When you’re outside of the fire service, it’s intimidating to knock on the door of a fire station and say, ‘Hi, I’m Alberto and I want to become a firefighter. How can you help me?’ It’s entirely different when you have someone on the other side of the door—someone who has invited you and would like you to be part of their family.”
The role of fire service affinity groups …
“When there’s tension and mistreatment, there’s a natural tendency to gravitate toward people who are like you and experiencing the same things—not only for support but as a safe haven. Los Bomberos of Northern California was formed in 1972 for those reasons as well as wanting a voice in the fire service. They felt they had a lot to offer but weren’t being heard because they were undervalued.
“As society has changed, so has the fire service. Today, it’s not about holding onto grievances of the past. We must honor those who came before us and opened the door, but we need to focus on the present. Collectively, we ought to seek solutions for a better, more responsive fire service in order to elevate our service to the community.”
On diversity...
“Here’s a definition of ‘diversity’ that I like to use: The full range of human and/or organizational differences and similarities, including experience, background, opinion and lifestyle that make each of us unique.
“Diversity broadens your perspective—you’re not thinking monolithically—you’re gathering information from different prisms, different life experiences. This is something I hold very close to me. It’s something that’s very important to our organization.
“When I grew up, for the most part, all I knew were other Mexican-Americans. Now, I know that Hispanic firefighters are also Cuban, Puerto Rican, Panamanian, Salvadorian, Guatemalan, Dominican—the list is long. I’ve come to appreciate our differences and the same drive to live the American dream. We have such a rich culture within the Hispanic heritage itself. As a national organization, to ensure that all these stakeholders are reflected and have a voice, we have to practice managing inclusion. This means leveraging the power of our differences and our similarities to achieve common goals.
“Appreciating diversity is not something you get out of books. It’s a discussion we should be having at the lunch table, the dinner table, with African-American firefighters, Hispanic firefighters, Asian firefighters, women firefighters.
“Let me tell you about an EMS call I had as a young firefighter a long time ago. A woman was having difficulty breathing. We got to the two-bedroom apartment and there were 12 people there. As soon as I walked through the door, I started speaking Spanish. Immediately, you could see the level of stress go down. We handled the incident and it went fairly smooth. As we were walking out, one of the firefighters said, ‘I can’t believe how people could live like that.’ When I walked in, all I could think about was my family. That was like how I grew up. There were 15 of us in a two-bedroom home with one bath. We didn’t have the economic capability to meet other people’s expectations but we had food, clothes; hardworking parents. When I saw that family, I saw my own. So when the firefighter asked the question, I answered, ‘You live that way with respect, integrity, hard work, knowing that all you have is family.’
“We continued the discussion back at the station at the dinner table. I said, ‘What you saw was my family. The differences are about 45 years, an opportunity and the personal relationship you have with me. If you had a personal relationship with that family, you’d understand that we’re the same.’ And that discussion wasn’t part of any diversity training with someone coming in from the outside. It took place among peers.”
On the San Jose Fire Department …
“We’re a very progressive department. Our firefighters are very diverse and therefore more comfortable with diversity. Potential firefighter candidates coming into the fire station are going to meet firefighters, captains, and senior command officers who are women, Hispanic, Vietnamese, and African American.”
On NAHF …
“Whenever I go around the country and meet with different organizations, I focus on their level of readiness for diversity initiatives. That first requires my listening. Listening to break down any idea that the National Association of Hispanic Firefighters is this militant group that is going to force change.
“We want to understand an organization’s goals and then offer our help. We view our offer of help extending diversity beyond just Hispanics, to include women, African-Americans, Asians, gays and lesbians. We want to include everyone in our conversation.”
On change in the fire service …
“In order for us to completely embrace change and diversity, it has to start at the top. With Kelvin Cochran as our new U.S. Fire Administrator, I think we have a great opportunity to change the fire service’s mindset. The National Fire Academy is the best place to learn about diversity, human relations, and interpersonal dynamics so it’s important for the Academy to make that a priority.”
Acknowledgement …
“Some of my best role models in the fire service have been white males. There have been white males in my department who have led major change, making the environment welcoming to people of color and women. I deeply appreciate that.”
A vision for the future …
“I believe that the community needs to become part of the DNA of the fire department. If you have a large Asian population that you serve, there should be a significant representation of that population in the department. The biggest under-representation that has to be addressed is women.
“Together with the other affinity groups, the NAHF can fill the gaps where we’re needed in order to take the fire service to a place that one day may not need separate groups. We’ll come to work being fully who we are—not defensive or on guard about our ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation.
“When we work in an environment that values and respects our differences, inspiration and innovation thrive and we’ll be developing new and better ways to deliver emergency services to our community.”
