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Ian VanGerpen was still a young Marine when he would take the train to Union Station in Los Angeles to visit his brother, a Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) firefighter.

“One night it just clicked,” he remembered, reflecting on the breeze coming through the windows of the ladder truck and the buzz of the City during a ride-along with his big brother. “The professionalism and the knowledge of the firefighters on the truck that night, their command presence, watching them work was inspiring to me.”

“Everyone had a task and mission and they all knew exactly what they were supposed to be doing,” he added. “It blew my mind. I thought, ‘This is it’.”

Although that moment played a significant part in VanGerpen becoming a Los Angeles City firefighter, he knew from a young age that firefighting was the goal.

VanGerpen’s father was a firefighter in Seattle, Washington for 38 years. He grew up watching his father be “the type of guy that could help everyone in the neighborhood.” The mechanical aptitude and diverse skillset his father gained from being a firefighter left an early impression on the VanGerpen boys.

As the 5th generation in a long line of military men, VanGerpen chose to join the Marines before becoming a firefighter, during which he served in Iraq as a Bomb Technician and Sergeant.

VanGerpen began the fire academy and took fire science classes to get his degree while still a Marine, wasting no time in his pursuit of the fire service.

Once he returned from the war, it was go-time. He joined the LAFD in 2005 and moved through several stations that helped him gain a fresh perspective on the breadth and scope of what the LAFD does – from Fire Station 72 in the Valley to Fire Station 88 with its Urban Search & Rescue (USAR) crew.

A full-circle moment occurred from his early days as a young Marine on that first ride-along with his brother when VanGerpen found himself back at LAFD Fire Station 3 in Downtown Los Angeles. While at Fire Station 3, he was reminded of the medical aspect of his father’s firefighting expertise and chose to go to paramedic school.

After passing the test, VanGerpen took a paramedic spot at LAFD Fire Station 70 in the valley and rode the rescue there for a few years, increasing his skill set and expertise even further.

Having run the gambit of different stations and communities across the City, and with paramedic and firefighting experience under his belt, VanGerpen promoted to captain. After promoting, he landed at LAFD Fire Station 37, where he finds deep value in creating the same camaraderie and connectedness that keeps him coming back every day.

He also now runs the LAFD Honor Guard and has been paying respects to fallen firefighters and supporting their families in their times of grief for the past 15 years.

“The type of bond you have at work carries you through traumatic experiences,” he reflected. When he was coming up in the fire service, talk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was taboo.

“Everyone has that one call,” he said, that is the one they will never forget. He was a young medic when that call came for him, which involved two innocent shooting victims, one of which was four years old. When he went to his captain for support afterward, he was not met with understanding and a desire to help.  

Even his experiences in combat are hard to compare to what he has seen as a 20-year LAFD firefighter.

“It’s good that we’re more of a support group for each other, and that we do have resources,” he said. “When that happens today, you’re getting help, you’re getting support.”

Through the good times and the bad, Captain VanGerpen is proud to be a Los Angeles City firefighter. “I like to be there for people in their darkest hour,” he said. “I think all of us do. It’s a reward in itself when you help someone or get to bring someone back to life,” he added.

“If you call 9-1-1, it’s the biggest emergency of your life. And we get to be there for you.”

The LAFD is only as good as its people. The Firefighter of the Month stories provide an opportunity for the actions of one member of the LAFD each month to be recognized for their achievements that the general public wouldn't normally hear.

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