ROANOKE, Va. – While many people were at home enjoying food with family and friends, some Roanoke firefighters spent their Thanksgiving waiting for calls.
“With this profession and having to work a holiday, you just learn to adjust around it with your family," said Lt. Kevin Bradbury of Roanoke Fire and Emergency Management Services.
Several Roanoke firefighters, including Bradbury, worked 24-hour shifts within Roanoke’s Fire Station 2 for Thanksgiving. Bradbury said the shifts are expected because emergencies can happen any day of the year.
“Being at this job for this long, working a holiday is normal," Bradbury said. "For some of the people who have been here two or three years, it’s a bigger adjustment for them.”
However, the holiday shifts did not prevent Station 2′s firefighters from spending time with family.
“Our families will come see us here," Bradbury said. "We always have an open door, so our families can come see us, especially on holidays.”
They did not have to cook any Thanksgiving dinner themselves; Fellowship Community Church in Salem delivered dinner to first responders throughout the Roanoke Valley for Thanksgiving, including the firefighters at Station 2.
“They’re not able to go and have a Thanksgiving dinner," said Fellowship Community Church Pastor Kevin Wilson. "To go out, to see those men and women and serve them...there’s nothing like it.”