Pride and Ownership: A Firefighter's Love of the Job

In Lasky's classic "pull no punches" style, he takes a hard look at today's fire service and finds it short on the only element that makes it effective: passion.  Chief Lasky offers an upfront and honest criticism about the need to reignite the love of the job on every level, from chiefs on down.  This book skillfully walks the line between holding on to "the old way" and tradition for tradition's sake at the expense of forward motion, and using tradition to inspire and propel forward motion.  Special features of the book include: extensive information on the history and traditions of the fire service with overviews of some of the most important fire service leaders; detailed explanations of ceremonies for all occasions from a firefighter's hiring and probie period through promotions to retirement; over 150 photos displaying rites and ceremonies; helpful appendices full of sample documents for fire company use.  The greatest strength of this book is in explaining how new thought (customer service and marketing) actually advance the pride and ownership of a department and each member in it, as well as the pride a community feels for its fire department.