Firefighter Larry Lichtenwalner Keeps Everything Working Right

Name:  Larry Lichtenwalner

Age:  64

Lives:  In Lower Macungie Township

Family:  Wife Carol, two sons, two daughters and a grandson

Job:  Truck driver for Trico Lift

Fire company:  He is an engineer for the .

Training so far:  “My job is to get everything hooked up—the mechanical end of the firefighting.  When I started 43 years ago, there was no training — it was on-the-job-training.  You learned by doing the job as you went along.  Most everything I know I learned that way.  Now, there are training classes required to be a firefighter.  There is also a lot more to know.”

What's it like being a firefighter?  “It’s time-consuming.  There is a lot to learn.  Being a firefighter is what people did years ago —i t was expected.  Boys and men joined the department and helped others in times of need.  You stopped what you were doing to help someone.”

How do your loved ones feel about you putting your life in danger?  “My family learned to live with it, but it is sometimes hard to deal with—being called out during family gatherings and in the middle of the night.”

Tell us a story you'll never forget about your firefighting experience.  “I don’t see a lot of action as an engineer, so I don’t really have any interesting stories to tell.  I’m busy keeping everything working right — the hoses and gauges.”

What would you tell people interested in joining your fire company?  “They should come out and try it, get information and see if it is right for them.  Firefighting is not for everyone.”

Do you know a volunteer firefighter who Patch should profile? Contact mariella.savidge@patch.com