-
-
|
- On 01 May,1980 I was selected to become a
- member of the California Conservation Corps.
-
- It was March 1980, I was 19 years old at the time, and I had tried my hand at 3
different Orange County Community Collages after high school. It just wasn't for me.
- I was not looking forward to spending another summer working as an air
conditioner installer. I had started putting in my applications when I
received a letter from a high school friend of mine, Ron Collins. We lost touch with
each other within a year of graduation, so it was a supprise to get a letter from
him. He was 4 days into the CCC academy training at Murphy's Camp, Brett Harte and
he was writing me a letter to tell me what was up.
-
- From his letter:
- "Hi Joe, I have 20 minutes to write you this letter. (3 pages long), then I
have to go to a "Conservation Ethics" lesson (?). I am really loving
it here. There are a million fantastic people: Corpsmembers and Staff; and
there are apparently a lot more opportunities within the Corps itself than I
thought. I'll be out of here in 15 days when the session graduates. The best
part? I am going to the Inyo Fire Center. They told me it is a very remote and
rugged location, which I specified on my application. This
is going to be one of the best things I have done with my life so far."
- That got me thinking. Working outdoors, out of Yuppie Scumville Orange County
(long before there were Yuppies), in the mountains, getting paid. Man, what a deal.
I went to the local unemployment office, and was told that there were no openings.
Shot down.
- In April I received another letter from Ron. It was after he had graduated
from the Academy, and had been posted to the Inyo Fire Center:
- "Hello Joe, from Inyo Fire Center! Damnit Joe, you have to join the Corps!!
I am not too sure you could get to Inyo Fire Center, but you could always ask.
You would love this place. Imagine this: A high desert valley lying at the
base of barren foothills covered with massive granite boulders, with the eastern range of
the Sierra Nevada's to the west and very nearby, while the White Mountains dominate the
western skyline. Please give it a shot, don't take no for an answer! This thing
could really give you direction and I KNOW you'll fit in!"
- That really got me thinking, so again I went to the unemployment office and asked
again. After about 30 minutes of "hurry up and wait" I was told to fill
out an application, and that I would be notified in writing by US mail if I had been
hired.
-
- Here is the letter I received:
- I took that LONG bus ride from the Los Angeles Greyhound terminal to Sacramento,
and arrived in beautiful downtown Sacramento. I had visions of what was in store for
me, including the "CCC Boot Camp". Imagine my supprise when I got to the
first table there was this huge big black guy who asked me: "Was I afraid of
hard work? Do I learn quickly? Would I fight fires?" No hello, no
hi my name is, just direct and to the point. Of course I answered NO / YES and YES
to his questions. He then asked me to step aside and wait for him to return. I
was getting some pretty weird looks from the other people who were waiting in line, and
from the people in yellow hats....
- This guy returned with 9 other people and asked if we had any questions. I
asked him where we were going, since I had wanted to get posted to the Inyo Fire Center.
He replied that we were going to "Placer Fire Center" in Auburn. I
told him that I had been hoping to be posted to the Inyo Fire Center, to which he replied
"well, if you want to go to Inyo then you better get back in line and take your
chances." I asked what he meant by that and he told me "I have just direct
hired you, you are not going through the Academy, you are going to my CCC Camp, Placer
Fire Center. My name is Dan Waters, and if you don't want to be here with me then
get back in line. But I can tell you this: Most of the fire crew positions in
the other camps have been filled. You might end up somewhere you "really"
don't want to be." I thought about it for a second, and told him I was his man.
He laughed and told me I wouldn't regret it!!
- I spent the next 18 months with Placer Fire Center, fighting fire throughout
California, planting trees, doing soil conservation work, and doing a lot of public
service work for the City and County of Auburn, Ca. I passed up a couple of
opportunities, like Redhat, Greenhat, Resource Protection Trainee, and Helitack.
Instead I chose to stay at Placer for another fire season. I don't regret any of the
choices I made! Well, perhaps the time I fell asleep in the women's dorm, but that's
another story!!
|
