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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (June 30, 2017)
June 30, 2017 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com • 3A Couple finds fulfillment as firefighters Firefighters from Page 1A CANNON BEACH FIRE AND RESCUE/SUBMITTED PHOTO Police and firefighters respond to an accident Thursday, June 22, near Arch Cape. Injuries in multiple vehicle crash On Thursday, June 22, around 9:30 p.m., Cannon Beach Fire and Rescue re- sponded to a report of a multiple vehicle accident in the Arch Cape area on Highway 101. Responding was Chief Matt Benedict, Lt. Steve Moon, S.O. Jo- anne Creamer, firefight- ers Shaunna White, Josiah Norris and Keaton Walde, along with Cannon Beach Police Department, Oregon State Police and Medix. Two people with minor in- juries were transported to a local hospital. FILE PHOTO Join the parade in Cannon Beach. Celebrate the Fourth in Cannon Beach American Legion Post 168 sponsors the Cannon Beach Independence Day parade. Registration starts at 9 a.m. at 1216 S. Hemlock; the parade starts at 11 a.m. The parade heads north on Spruce Street from the stag- ing area between Gower and Monroe streets and features kids, bikes, old cars and decorated entries. The Le- gion post will be open after the parade for hot dogs. For more information. contact Dan O’Reilly at 503-436- 8689 or Nancy Teagle at 503-436-0424. she was 14, who at the time was a volunteer firefighter and her sister’s best friend. To help move the relation- ship, her sister suggested she ask TJ to help her fix the radio in the car she just purchased at 16. One thing led to anoth- er, and suddenly she found herself loving another first responder. Unique challenges While it’s not uncommon for couples to be in the same business, some things get more complicated when the business is saving lives. “It’s one thing when you’re risking your own life,” TJ said. “But it’s different when it involves people you love. Potentially sending my wife into a structure fire is a little bit of a tall order, but it’s a job that has to be done.” That personal connection is a benefit, too, TJ said. The two have an immense trust and respect for the other’s abilities and judgments. They rarely have to communicate because both know what needs to be done and how. “When we get done with a call, we both experienced all the same stuff,” TJ said. “Be- cause of privacy issues, we can’t talk about our work with people who weren’t there. But since we both were there, we can help each other process. You see some terrible things sometimes.” It’s a lifestyle and under- standing the two developed while serving in the Marine Corps. Both entered the mil- itary in 2009 — TJ after vol- unteering with Cannon Beach Fire and Rescue for seven years and Shaunna right out of high school. TJ was inspired by his fa- ther, who served as a police officer in Cannon Beach. Serving his country was a way to help replicate the safe, simple childhood he got to experience in Cannon Beach, TJ said. COLIN MURPHEY/EO MEDIA GROUP Cannon Beach volunteer firefighter Shaunna White, right holding onto car door, participates in a training exercise last week. When the fire department threw a going-away party for TJ at the Driftwood, one of the wives asked him why he was joining the service. “I pointed back at my team, and said, ‘That’s why’ — to make sure people could continue to do whatever they want to do without fear of something else.” “Wow,” Shaunna said. “That’s a beautiful story. I just didn’t want to go to college. And I wanted to be a Marine.” “So basically you were more scared of college than going into combat?” TJ asked. “Yeah, I guess so,” Shaunna laughed. Strong, unstoppable For Shaunna, it was her grandfather — a veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam wars — that inspired her to en- list. Being a Marine meant be- ing strong, being unstoppable. It meant success. “So when I finally got in, I remember asking, ‘Can I be a tanker?’ and they said that was for only men. I asked to be a grunt, and again, only men,” Shaunna said. “I could be a cook or a tactical switchboard operator, so I chose the last one.” The two separated for 11 months for training before TJ managed to transfer near Camp Pendleton in California, where Shaunna was stationed. A year- and-a-half in, they were mar- ried, which allowed them to stay together throughout their tours. “It put a tremendous stress on our relationship,” TJ said. “It’s a lifestyle that’s hard to understand if you’re not in it.” After living in a world where 4 a.m. runs and six-hour packing trips in the beating sun are status quo, both TJ and Shaunna found something missing in their lives when re- turning to the civilian world. “The Marine Corps made me feel unstoppable. It made me who I am today, instead of college. I had this overall im- portant mission. Only 6 per- cent of Marines are female,” Shaunna said. “So when I got out, I felt like I was nothing, insignificant. It made me de- pressed.” That’s when TJ convinced her to try firefighting with him, to help recreate the structure and team atmosphere of the military. “It doesn’t necessarily make the transition easier, but it will help you give a direction to feel like you are doing something, instead of hanging up your uniform and remembering the good old days. That’s hard.” in veterans who serve as vol- unteer firefighters is an innate sense of responsibility, work ethic and respect. “They understand struc- ture, and that is critical. They will fall back on their military background in a major inci- dent,” Benedict said. For the past year, Bene- dict has seen veterans, such as Shaunna and TJ, transition and grow more comfortable with the job. “It’s important to keep their minds busy, and we give them an opportunity to do that,” Benedict said. Shaunna is pursuing her fire-science degree at Clatsop Community College with the hopes of making firefighting her career. TJ is pursuing a degree is psychology at Or- egon State University while working as a phlebotomist at Providence Seaside Hospital in the hopes of becoming a physician’s assistant in emer- gency medicine. What type of first re- sponder work and where are to be determined for TJ and Shaunna’s future, but no mat- ter what, they are committed to keeping Cannon Beach safe. “When I left the mili- tary, I missed the challenge,” Shaunna said. “It took me awhile to get here, but I fell in love.” Into the future One of the largest benefits Fire Chief Matt Benedict sees Custom Homes & Remodels Joe Zak General Contractor 503-440-1500 503-368-3920 zakconst@gmail.com Licensed • Bonded • Insured CCB#76743 zakconstruction.net
