Monday, October 17th 2022, 6:30 pm
Being a firefighter, the specifics of the day can change in an instant. Cynthia Sanders got to witness what her son goes through firsthand.
“It’s a long crucial process, but I mean you learn a lot from it,” said Caleb Sanders, a recruit with the Oklahoma City Fire Department.
Sanders is six months out of the 16-week academy and is learning more about his new job every day.
“So basically, our job is to do everything, it is to do everything you can to help out,” said Caleb.
So, when Caleb got his first cooking assignment at the station, he knew exactly what to do.
“I was cooking pork chops, so I sauteed some onions and asparagus, and then I cooked baked potatoes with it. You know I had my pork chops and a side of salad,” said Caleb.
The self-proclaimed ‘mama’s boy’ said he learned his way around the kitchen from the woman that raised him. His first night as chef brought on an emergency.
“I came up to bring the rice cooker because this was Caleb’s first night to cook,” said Cynthia Sanders, Caleb’s mother.
Cynthia was invited to stay and have dinner with the firefighters, but then things got a little crazy.
“We had just fixed our plates getting ready to sit down to eat and I see everybody running,” said Cynthia.
“We got the tones, the tones had dropped and so we all came out to the red room and got ready,” said Caleb.
Cynthia wasn’t sure what to do at the time, but the firefighters had not forgotten about her.
“They were like come on mom, so anyway I ran, jumped in the truck, or the fire engine,” said Cynthia.
And just like that Cynthia was on her first ride along.
“For a long time now the Oklahoma City Fire Department has offered ride alongs,” said Captain Scott Douglas with the Oklahoma City Fire Department.
Douglas says ride alongs are supported but not done without precautions.
“This is a great opportunity for his mom to ride along with him on an emergency call. There are strict guidelines with a ride along, you know we don’t put them in harm’s way,” said Douglas.
Cynthia has become somewhat of a local celebrity.
“I’m not really on Facebook, but it went out on Facebook and Twitter so that was pretty cool,” said Cynthia,
The firefighters love having Ms. Cynthia around and say she’s always welcome. She says the ride along was super exciting and can’t wait to do it again.
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