Senior follows father’s fiery footsteps

“I got into firefighting because of my dad. He has been doing it for over 25 years,” said Matt Carrigan, a volunteer firefighter at Station 15 in Burtonsville, Maryland. Carrigan is not your average high school senior, and his job is far from a “normal” teenage job. During lunch, Carrigan leaves Paint Branch High School in his truck and heads down to the station where he works.

He graduated from firefighter training in January 2014 and has been working with the station ever since. Being around fire stations and watching his father work has inspired Carrigan to be an EMT for a fire station. Currently Carrigan is balancing school, firefighting, EMT training/tests, and even a part time job for a landscaping company.

“I am required by the firehouse to do a 12 hour duty night at least once a week. But I often ride whenever I can,” Carrigan said.

On the job, Carrigan met a friend and fellow fighter named Bryson Reyes. Reyes and Carrigan did not train together but have grown close from working at the station together. Reyes also balances another job as he works part time at Vocelli Pizza. Although the firehouse does not pay him for his work he considers it to be his primary and most important job.

“I view that as my primary job, because it’s what I like doing”, Reyes gushed as he spoke fondly of his job at the station.

When Carrigan and Reyes are at the station, their time is full of running calls and training. Most importantly they have fun doing what they love. These two boys are proof that you can do anything you set your mind to, no matter what age you may be, and you can even have a little room for fun.