In the early 1980s, Lisa Epps-Cuda was working at Horne’s Department Store in Downtown Pittsburgh.
She saw an advertisement about becoming a City of Pittsburgh firefighter.
“I mentioned it to my colleague and she said, ‘Here you are selling designer dresses and you think you can become a firefighter,’ ” recalled Epps-Cuda, fire inspector and fire prevention officer for the Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire, while inside Fire House No. 4 in Uptown on Thursday. “ ‘You’re too prissy,’ she told me. And I said, ‘Is that a challenge?’ ”
Challenge accepted.
Not only did Epps-Cuda overcome that challenge, she’s creating a path for other females as she leads her third Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire Girls Fire Camp this week for teens ages 14-18.
The girls are getting a hands-on experience about the profession.
They traveled to the fire house in Uptown, the busiest fire house in the city. They learned the job is about fighting fires but also responding to emergency medical calls, accidents, and even retrieving a cat stuck in a tree. The girls helped wash the fire trucks, unload a ladder, and unwrap and wrap fire hoses. They went for a ride in a fire truck.
The 27 girls toured the fire house and walked through the kitchen where firefighters prepare meals, which included hamburgers and hot dogs for the campers. They tried some exercise equipment because the job requires physical and mental toughness.
Firefighters become family, said Capt. Chris Mitchell. They spend a lot of time together and need to know what the other person next to them is doing. When they go out on a call, everything needs to run seamlessly.
He talked about having the mindset to always be ready for everything from a cut on a person’s hand to a fatality.
He said that in his 25 years on the job, he has worked with women whom he trusts to be on a call with him because they will have his back if he needs something. “This profession is all about trust.”
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Being able to attend this camp is an eye-opener to what firefighters do, said Damian Szuch, battalion chief for the Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire’s 4th District. In a traditionally male-dominated field, he said, there are women who do it well.
“We are like an insurance policy,” Szuch said. “You hope you never need us. But if you do, we are here.”
The week began at Ebenezer Baptist Church with team-building exercises and learning CPR. They visited the Pittsburgh Fire Training Academy on Wednesday and will be on the fire boat on Friday near Point State Park. Graduation is Saturday.
They’ve had instruction on fitness and nutrition, emergency medical care and fire science. One of several sponsors is Mine Safety Appliances, which supplies fire equipment. MSA marketing manager Jasmine Spencer said the camp fits the company mission, which is “for men and women to work in safety. And that they and their families and their community may live in health throughout the world.”
”These will be our next leaders,” Spencer said. “In addition to learning about firefighting, this camp helps build self-esteem and teaches them life skills.”
Nevaeh Devine, 15, said she learned how difficult it is to be firefighter; she appreciates what they do.
Twins Madeline and Riley Dickey, 15, have attended the past two years. Madeline said she learned about all of the other calls firefighters go on in addition to fires.
Riley likes the various experiences of the week. She said it’s important that women should be treated equally in whatever field of work they choose.
“When you actually get to physically do something, you appreciate it more,” Riley said.
This was the first camp for Aaliyah Gordon, 14. She said learning CPR is a good thing to know. She said she was nervous at the beginning of the week but has made friends.
“I enjoyed riding in the fire truck,” Gordon said. “I learned that girls can do anything they want to do.”
Learning the equipment of firefighting is crucial, said Mitchell, because “if you are in a smoked-filled room and your mask is not on correctly, you can’t take it off to check it.” You also have to be able to walk flights of stairs carrying items and be ready at a moment’s notice, Mitchell said.
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“We eat a lot of cold meals because we get calls while we are eating and we have to leave right away,” Mitchell said.
Epps-Cuda, who became a firefighter in 1990 and moved to prevention 14 years ago, said she wanted to help make the profession more diverse, which is why she started this camp. She grew up in East Liberty and on the North Side and said there were many roadblocks in her career. She advocated for separate sleeping areas and bathrooms for female firefighters. She was inspired by Toni McIntosh, the first Black woman to become a full-time firefighter in 1976 in Pittsburgh.
Epps-Cuda said city councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith has supported the camp since the beginning. The Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire has as well.
”I felt that as a woman and a woman of color, it was my job to do something,” Epps-Cuda said. “I am trying to give these girls experiences they’ve never had before. I have been through a lot of stuff that I don’t want them to have to go through. God put me where I truly believe I was meant to be so I can help these girls. I hope I laid the foundation for the next generation of female firefighters.”
“Lisa is empowering women, which gives us the feeling that we can do anything we want to do,” Madeline said. “She is teaching us to work hard and overcome challenges.”
Epps-Cuda knows about challenges.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region’s diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of “A Daughter’s Promise.” She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.