Meredith Lund is no stranger to forging new ground.
Lund, of New Ipswich, became the town’s first female fire chief after elections in March, having worked her way through the ranks.
She’s not just the first female chief that the department ever had, Lund said in a recent interview with the Ledger-Transcript. She was the first female firefighter the department had ever seen. And her 24-year career service started with a dare.
In July of 1992, Lund started working on her EMT certification.
“I wanted to join the ambulance. I wasn’t even looking at the fire department,” said Lund. “I took a course on auto extrication, and the instructor said to me, ‘You know, you should try for the fire department.’”
At the time, the department was all male, said Lund, and within the same breath as the suggestion came the rebuttal: “New Ipswich will never have a female on the department.”
“I said, ‘Oh really?’” recalled Lund, eyebrow lifted in much the same way it must have been at the time.
Challenge accepted.
It wasn’t always an easy environment for a woman, said Lund, even though within a few months of her joining, Mary Fish became a part of the department.
“I got my share of comments. Someone said that they didn’t have to clean the kitchen anymore, since there was a woman on the department now,” said Lund. “I had to say, ‘No, I’m not here to clean the bathroom. I’m not here to clean the kitchen. I’m a firefighter.’”
Even after she became lieutenant, there were times her gender made people question her abilities, she recalled. She described one scene when a homeowner, fearing for her safety, followed Lund back into a house.
“I had to tell him I’d be al right on my own, that I had the gear to be safe,” she said. “As I went into the house, I heard him ask the chief, ‘Is that little girl going to be OK by herself?’”
Lund admits it’s a physically demanding job that can be tough on women who haven’t developed upper body strength. But for those willing to work with their advantages – mainly a lower center of gravity and strong lower extremities – it can be done with the same proficiency as men.
“If you can compensate, you can get along,” said Lund. “And some of it is mindset.”
Now, nearly a quarter of a century after Lund began in the fire service, there is still a dearth of females – only about 3.9 percent nationally according to Deborah Pendergast, director of the New Hampshire Fire Academy. The Northeast is below even that, with a 2.8 percent average.
And when it comes to chiefs, Lund is one of only four part-time chiefs leading community firehouses in the state. The others are in Fitzwilliam, Holderness and Hill. Pendergast herself is the only appointed career chief, serving as head of the N.H. Fire and EMS Academy.
“There are 8,100 firefighters and 269 departments in New Hampshire,” said Pendergast. “Four is a very small number.”
But things are improving, said Pendergast. Starting at about the same time as Lund, all-male departments were the absolute norm. “The younger girls coming up now, there are at least some role models to look to. When I was growing up, women didn’t say that we were going to grow up and be a firefighter. Now, it’s more of an opportunity open to everyone.”
As more women join, said Pendergast, the door continues to open through the most basic of levels, such as companies that make fire department gear sized to fit women.
“Once upon a time, there wasn’t any gear or boots being made to fit women. As that changes, it becomes easier and safer for women to make it a career,” said Pendergast.
And though she started her career to make a point, said Lund, it’s become a lifelong passion for her.
“It’s a combination of the adreneline rush and the desire to make a difference,” said Lund. “And then there’s – I won’t call it a brotherhood – a camraderie, that no matter where you go, if you say you’re a firefighter, instantly you’re accepted.”
Then there are The Moments.
Meeting as an adult the newborn baby you rescuscitated moments after his birth. Digging pits to protect the firefighters’ camp during the massive wildfires that plague the Southwest during the dry season.
And these moments make the difficult parts worth it, said Lund.
“A female can be successful in the fire service if they want to work at it,” said Lund. “But they have to work at it. Because it’s not going to be handed to them.”
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com.