We're First In!: Looking Back Beyond The Smoke & Sirens

by Jim Hawkins

In forty years, Jim Hawkins has worked in almost every aspect of firefighting, beginning as a wild land “Hot Shot,” working as a radio dispatcher and firefighter in Arizona, assisting with arson investigations and almost 25 years as a firefighter and EMT for the City and County of Denver. He is quick to acknowledge that anyone working in emergency services will have a catalog of “war stories” to relate. In this book, he has assembled many of his experiences that range from humorous to unbelievable. He has made an effort to show the human and sometimes flawed life of a professional firefighter/medic. Although possibly entertaining, “blood and guts” situations are not the focus of his stories. Looking back through the smoke and sirens, you will be able to glimpse the everyday workings of a big city fire station, the slang vocabulary that becomes a working language inside the department and some of the bizarre situations firefighters encounter.

190 pages, Paperback

First published July 19, 2020

About the author

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Reviews

[Lauren Tocco · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’ve never been down to Glenwood Springs, CO., I urge you to take a trip. I met Jim Hawkins while visiting Glenwood Springs, where we stayed at his former Bed and Breakfast and current VRBO rental. Jim is truly the most interesting man I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting, and this book is a wonderful look into the wonderful but also crazy chaos of his life. Upon entering the cabin we stayed in on his property, I noticed his book sitting on one of the nightstands next to one of the beds. I cracked it open and read the first few pages and knew that I needed to have it. After staying the night on his property having taken a walk around it, we found Jim to thank him for hosting us. I bought the book from him and the rest is history.

Reading this book helped me learn so much more about him, and it felt exactly how I’d picture listening to my grandpa tell stories at dinner time. As someone who’s never gotten to experience that, I found a lot of joy in my reading experience. Jim tells stories in a delightfully human way.

Again, if you have the time and resources, take a trip to Glenwood Springs and go stay with him. Ask him all about his firefighting/EMT days, his songwriting, and what he’s currently up to. There’s a lot to learn from him. He’s interacted with so many cool people, and done hundreds more unique things than I probably ever will in my life! If you are interested in firefighting, Colorado, hearing from someone who’s life experiences rival that of an episode of 911, then this book is for you. Oh, and if you visit him, make sure you stay on a night where he’s hosting live music in his barn, and make sure you take a look around that space. There is a story in every chair, picture, guitar, and hat in that hayloft!