Gary Vap: Training Next Generation of Firefighters, Including His Sons

In 2015, Gary Vap retired after 30 years as a career firefighter. But then he found himself back in the fire service three years later.

He was hired by Pioneer Technology Center in Ponca City to develop and implement a Firefighter/EMT program. He also works part-time for OSU-Fire Service Training, providing training assistance for rural fire departments in the north central region of the state.

“ I have had the privilege to train the next generation of young firefighters, including both of my sons,” Gary said. “It is very rewarding to see former students riding the rigs and being a part of the best job in the world!”

And Gary says the fire service found him.

“While home from college, working on the family farm, I came across a multi victim fatality vehicle accident on a rural country road where the car was on its top in a creek,” Gary said. “After going for help (before the days of cell phones), I returned to the scene and provided what care I could to the victims.

“After first responders arrived at the scene, I helped with the extrication of the victims. And from that experience, I knew what I wanted to do and did pursue the path that led me to the fire service.”

Gary inspired his sons Daniel and Jacob to become firefighters. He also has two brothers-inlaw and numerous cousins serving or retired from the fire service. And he is proud to be part of a multi-generational fire family.

“The fire service is steeped in the history of legacy firefighters,” Gary said. “Many departments value their generational ties to the departments and to their communities in which they serve.

“The traditions carried down make it more than just a job. It is an amazing family of which I am proud to be a part. I didn’t push either of my sons to follow my career path. I wanted them to find their own way, but seeing them advance and grow in their careers sure makes for a proud dad.”

• Gary Vap (1st Generation) Newkirk FD (1985 to 1987) Ponca City FD (1987-2015)

• Daniel Vap (2nd Gen.) Ponca City FD (2020 to now)

• Jacob Vap (2nd Gen.) Blackwell

Daniel Vap took his dad’s Firefighter/EMT class right out of high school. And he was Gary’s first student to obtain an EMT license.

“I grew up in the fire house and seeing the love he had for the job and how everyone up there was like family was awesome,” Daniel said. “For as long as I can remember, the co-workers he was most close with I never really knew as my dad’s co-workers. To me, they were uncles. To him, they were brothers.

“When I enrolled in my dad’s class and got to get hands-on experience, I loved it and it sealed the deal on what I wanted in a career.

“It’s awesome being able to swap stories with my dad and brother, and I feel we learn a little bit from each when we do.

“My dad left a great legacy at PCFD and my brother’s co-workers tell me that he is already shaping up to be a great fireman/AEMT. I’m proud of both of them.”

Jacob Vap has always had a love for helping others and working in a family/team-oriented environment.

So he became a firefighter like his dad Gary and brother Daniel.

“I think it’s a very honorable life, and I’m glad I can share these values with my father and brother,” said Jacob said.

“There are tons of funny moments from at the dinner table or playing pranks on each other, to the things we’ve heard patients tell us.

Jacob prides himself on being able to help members of community in their times of need.

And he is the proud father of twin boys he and his wife welcomed into their family in July.

Travis Fortune began his firefighting career at Longdale Fire Department the day he turned 18, serving there with his father.

After being at Longdale FD for eight years leaving as the Assistant Chief, he joined Fairview Fire and served the rest of his 25 years working his way through the ranks.

He become Fairview Fire Chief in 2014. And after 25 years of service, he retired in March of 2022.

Growing up in the fire service, Travis remembers his excitement when his dad would let him ride his bike up to the station for a fire meeting or even ride on the truck during their truck checks.

It was these moments alongside his father, and his father’s chief Paul Hinchey, that inspired him to be a firefighter.

Travis even still remembers the “Kids of Volunteer Firefighter’s commandments”:

• Never park your bicycle/toys behind dad’s truck.

• Keep shoes out of the door and toys off the sidewalk, in case a late night call comes in and he has to respond, so he doesn’t trip over anything.

• Vacations and family events will be delayed because of a call.

• Don’t you dare plan anything on the weekend of the annual benefit supper because the whole family WILL be going, no excuses.

• If the fire phone rang in the house, don’t you dare answer it, unless you wanted dad to smack you in the head with the phone.

• Most important -- don’t let him catch you in the way at the fire scene. You can see the action, but only from a distance.

Growing up, Travis also recalls his excitement when his mother would wake him up in the middle of the night and take him with her to structure fires, because that’s what the wives did on night calls to deliver coffee, food or water.

• Kenny Fortune (1st Generation)

Longdale FD (1974 to 2002)

• Travis Fortune (2nd Gen.)

Longdale FD (1997 to 2005)

Fairview FD (2005 to 2022)

• Brenner Fortune (3rd Gen.)

Fairview FD (2022 to now)

Vance Air Force FF (2023 to now)

His father Kenny Fortune served 25 years on Longdale FD and retired as Assistant Chief. His son Brenner Fortune is a firefighter at Vance Air Force Base and volunteers at Fairview Fire, as well.

“It is a great feeling to be involved in a multi-generational fire family knowing how much my father and myself and hopefully my son wants to serve their community and make a difference,” Travis said.

“I truly think it’s passion that’s bred into a person, and I hope my father felt and my son feels the same pride and dedication I did for wanting to help the people in need on possibly some of the worst days of their lives!”

Cameron Cooper’s hero was his dad, and he wanted to be a firefighter just like him.

So when he was a high school junior, his dad suggested he volunteer somewhere.

He was too young to join the Shawnee FD where his dad served. But he was welcomed into the bay doors at Strother FD, which offers a program allowing high school students to experience what it’s like to be a firefighter.

“This was a whole new world,” Cameron said. “Yes, I had grown up in a firehouse watching my dad train and go out on rides, but to experience this, knowing I was about to enter a whole new world, is an amazing but terrifying feeling.

• Craig A. Cooper (1st Generation) Shawnee FD (2000 to 2017)

• Cameron Cooper (2nd Gen.) Strother FD (2020 to 2022) OKC FD (2022-now)

• Lane Cooper (2nd Gen.) Tecumseh FD (2022 to now)

After graduating from high school, Cameron took the next step and enrolled in the OSUOKC Fire Academy to earn certifications and receive training to become a better firefighter. And on Sept. 22, 2022, he received a job offer from the Oklahoma City Fire Department.

“I immediately accepted, and the next chapter of my life began,” Cameron said. “The thing in my career that I’m most proud of is being able to call myself an Oklahoma City Fire Department firefighter. I wholeheartedly believe it is the best department in the entire world, and I’m extremely thankful and humble to be a part of it.”

Sadly, Cameron’s dad was not there to pin the badge on his chest when he graduated from the Class 22-2 Recruit Academy. Craig died of terminal brain cancer in 2021 at age 53.

“He was taken way too soon,” Cameron said. “I remember often visiting him at the firehouse; I remember him letting me climb all over the rigs, put on his gear, play with the tools and spray water. His career was cut short, but he loved the fire service. He once said, ‘I’m just an ordinary man doing extraordinary things for extraordinary people.’

“It is a very great feeling to be a part of a legacy firefighter family. It’s not just about being a firefighter. It is about continuing a legacy that was cut short, but knowing that my brother Lane and I are picking up where my father left off is an honor. And we will do our best to make our dad proud.”

Mike Ward has served on the Tulsa FD for 33 years and counting.

And counting all his family through the years, they have served on the Tulsa FD for 95 consecutive years.

“It’s is a blessing and responsibility handed down to me, my wife and my son currently to carry on the good reputation our generations before us have built,” Mike said. “It’s intimidating but something we take pride in, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Mike has also been blessed to have had extensive conversations with all of his family that served on Tulsa Fire.

And he has tried to soak it all in ... fighting fire in the 1920s ... having to obtain an individual radio license to operate the first “on the fire truck radio” in the 1940s ... the night club arson fires of the 1950s and 1960s through the large fires of urban decay.

Even with so many influentional people in his life, those who inspire him most are his parents.

“My dad, a decorated Vietnam Veteran who served on very active fire companies, worked as a brick mason as a second job to make ends meet and was a school board member in our town of Big Cabin where I grew up,” Mike said.

“And my mother, who served as a stay-athome mom, worked on the Tulsa Fire Ladies Auxiliary (this was prior to females being hired on TFD) and went back to college to become a teacher. Both of them are service-driven people with huge hearts who work hard and care for others.”

Mike is currently a Captain at Engine 17, the same place he roamed as a child because it was dad’s station, too.

“Every single time I walk into the station, I’m truly a kid again, and it’s awesome that my life has come full circle back to Engine 17,” Mike said. “After 33 years, I still can’t wait to go to work. How many people get to say that?!

“I hope to keep doing this until I age out at 65 and then I hope for a long happy retirement traveling the world and spending time with family.”

• Farl Wagoner (1st Generation)

Tulsa FD (1928 to 1962)

• Quincy Carrens (2nd Gen.)

Tulsa FD (1946 to 1975)

• Darrell Ward (3rd Gen.)

Tulsa FD (1969 to 2003)

• Mike Ward (4th Gen.)

Tulsa FD (1991 to now)

• Ginger Ward (Mike’s wife)

Tulsa FD (1997 to now)

• Colin Ward (5th Gen.)

Tulsa FD (2019 to now)

Growing up, Colin Ward thought it was funny how someone always seemed to know his dad Mike.

“ I later learned that they were fellow firefighters or other 911 members,” Colin said. “I always grew up wanting to be just like my dad and save people.

“When I was a junior in high school and trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, I asked my dad some questions about the job and took an EMT course. I learned about all the ways that firefighters could make a difference in the lives of others.”

Quincy Carrens, Colin’s great grandfather, also made a difference in his life.

“He once told me a story about a fire in a bowling alley,” Colin remembers. “He said that when they were about to make entry, a popcorn cart rolled out of the door completely engulfed in flames. They knew they had a good fire.

“He said that when they made entry, the flames on the lanes were blue. He described it as a chaotically beautiful experience -- one that could only be experienced by those in the fire service.”

Colin considers joining the fire service to be one of his greatest decisions.

“From becoming part of a family with my crew to the personal growth I’ve achieved over the last few years, the department has helped me to become a better version of myself,” he said.

Julian started his Emergency Services career in 1998 working for Alva EMS. In 2000, he began work with Collinsville EMS. In 2008 Collinsville EMS and Collinsville Fire combined services.

Since being hired with CFD, he has held the positions of firefighter, Lieutenant, and now serves as Captain.

Although he was not necessarily looking to become a firefighter when it happened, he is thankful he had his brother and father to go to for questions and advice. He credits them for his inspiration to serve in the fire service and said they were a great resource for him.

“We all know that the world’s problems are solved at the table at the firehouse,” Julian said. “The table in the morning at the start of a shift is one of the many things that I love about having this job. Family, events, sports, politics, the occasional hazing of each other, no topic is really out of bounds.

“Now think about family gatherings, getting to sit there and have a firehouse table talk with your dad and brother. The topics don’t change -- and neither does the hazing -- but you get to listen to what’s happening in the fire service on the northwest side of Oklahoma and occasionally the old retiree chimes in and tells you how it was back in his day.”

Julian also considers his crew that he works with day in and day out part of his family.

“Those guys are extended family,” he said. “Names and faces have changed over the years, but they are all still and will always be like brothers. Standing side by side with them every third day and watching the hard work that they put in for the citizens of Collinsville is the greatest feeling of pride.”

Never having the opportunity to sit and talk to his grandfather and great grandfather about their time in the fire department is something he hates.

But one thing that he always has admired about Alva FD was the history that they have saved, be it photos or run logs. Just getting to see those men in photos or their names on reports that date back to the 1920s is really amazing. Then having a dad and now a brother who works for Alva continue on with that tradition is really special to him.

“The name on your helmet represents who you work for,” he said. “The name on your coat represents who raised you. Do them both justice.”

• Fred Miller (1st Generation)

Alva FD (1926 to 1946)

• Marion F. Miller (2nd Gen.)

Alva FD (1948 to 1968)

• Frederick O. Miller (3rd Gen.)

Alva FD (1982 to 2002)

• Ronald Wayne Miller (3rd Gen.)

Offerle (Kan.) FD (1960 to 1996)

• Bryan Miller (4th Gen.)

Alva FD (2005 to now)

• Julian W. Miller (4th Gen.)

Collinsville FD (2008 to now)

Bryan Miller attended OSUOKC in 1999 and majored in Fire Protection Safety and Technologies.

He started his emergency services career in 2001 with the Alva Police Department as a patrolman. He left in 2003 to become a detective in Kansas.

After returning home to Alva in April of 2005, he started his forever career in the fire service with Alva FD as a Firefighter/EMT.

He has a rich family history in the fire service and has always wanted to follow that tradition.

On July 7, 2014, he was promoted to the rank of Assistant Fire Chief and was assigned the duties of being Alva’s first Fire Marshal. On August 17, 2020, he was appointed and sworn in as the new Fire Chief.

Bryan’s favorite story in relation to his firefighting career is when not too many years ago, his 2nd grade teacher showed up to his office. She brought with her a letter Bryan wrote to himself in an 80’s time capsule they buried, asking where he wanted to be in 30 years.

His answer? He wanted to be a firefighter; it truly was his childhood dream to carry out his family’s tradition. Bryan credits this dream to his father, Frederick Miller.

He said there was never a time he cannot remember not wanting to be a fireman, just like his dad. He has been and always will be his hero.

There are no words to describe the feeling that comes with being part of a multi-generational fire family and being able to carry on the family legacy. While there is a joy in carrying on those traditions, Bryan also recognizes the sadness. He has always wanted to meet his grandfather, Marion, who passed when he was a baby.

He recalls the countless stories and photos he has received and heard from those who fought fire with him, and recently just was given his fire helmet. Bryan’s greatest hope is that he can be half the man, firefighter, and leader his grandfather was. While he has a deep appreciation for being able to share with his father and brother, there is a piece that will always feel missing never getting to know his grandfather’s stories firsthand.