Seasonal Employment to Equip Veterans for Firefighting Careers
Veterans Green Jobs’ wildland firefighting program offers seasonal employment opportunities that help put veterans on a career path with state and federal resource and land management agencies such as the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, State Parks and the national parks system.
With programs in several western U.S. states, we engage veterans in wildland firefighting projects by providing hands-on experience in fire mitigation on public lands. Veterans earn certifications and experience that could lead to future employment in wildland firefighting and related fields.
Crews may include both veterans and non-veterans — and all offer the opportunity for veterans to connect with other former servicemen and women while spending time in the beautiful outdoors and our western landscape.
“There’s a certain structure with fire services
that gives me a direction to go.
I like being outside, doing labor and working with others.”
– Sarah Castaneda, Veteran of the U.S. Army
Getting Started
- Read our fact sheet
- View a list of upcoming opportunities
- Read about the application process
- Contact our Conservation Outreach Assistant @ 720-236-1349 or email: vgc@veteransgreenjobs.org
Derrick Charpentier
The Warrior Spirit
For Derrick Charpentier, the “big selling point” of Veterans Green Jobs’ program was the outdoor experience. “It’s nice to get away from email and TV for a few weeks and reconnect with the wilderness and nature. We live in the only world we’ll ever get; I’m more committed now than ever to getting the forest back to its natural pristine condition.”
Derrick first launched into trail operations on the Archuleta Trail in the wilderness of Rio Grande National Forest, followed by a week of chainsaw training at Ice Cave Ridge in San Juan National Forest. He received a number of certifications in just six months, including S-212 Wildland Fire Chain Saw certification through Colorado Firecamp, and the S-130/S-190 wildland fire training required of all firefighters before they can work on the firelines. He was also trained in wilderness first aid and CPR.
Derrick’s experience through Veterans Green Jobs has paid off in ways he hadn’t imagined before. He was hired to join Dinosaur National Park’s Engine Crew for wildland firefighting on a seasonal basis. Today, he has a job as a wildland firefighter for the Bureau of Land Management. Read the full story.
