S1, E9 - You Make Time - Becca Sikorski Interview

May 19th, 2026: What happens when someone joins the fire service for all the wrong reasons… and ends up finding exactly where they belong?

In this episode of The Heart of the Volunteer, Paul Cummings sits down with Becca Sikorski of the Lake Shore Fire Department for one of the most honest conversations of the season so far.

Becca shares her unconventional path into the fire service, the anxiety and self-doubt she battled early on, and how volunteering unexpectedly transformed her confidence, purpose, and sense of community. What began as simply wanting to be around the environment quickly became something much bigger.

The conversation dives into the reality of combination departments, the evolving challenges facing volunteer fire and EMS agencies, and the importance of leadership, mentorship, and belonging inside today’s firehouses. Becca also opens up about being a woman in the fire service, learning to prove things to herself rather than others, and the family she found inside the walls of the station.

Most importantly, this episode centers around one simple but powerful idea: “You make time… and you make time for other people’s lives, because it’s important. Our community is important.”

This isn’t just a conversation about firefighting. It’s about purpose, community, and choosing to show up for something bigger than yourself.