By Alison Votaw, Communications Volunteer
Lester Fuzell may have retired from the Fire Department, but he never retired from doing what matters: helping others.
Lester’s story begins as a young kid visiting a Halloween festival in his hometown. At the festival, he was immediately intrigued by a beautiful red ladder truck and noticed a fireman and some younger guys standing around it. He inquired about the fire truck and was introduced to the explorer program. He joined the Orange County Explorer program in high school and spent the next 37 years serving Southern California through various LA County Fire jobs, including firefighter, paramedic, arson investigator, and fire captain.
During his years of service to the LA Fire Department, he volunteered in a variety of capacities including, as an advisor for the Explorer program, softball coach for the Boys and Girls club, and umpire and coach for the local softball league.
As a fire captain, he worked hand in hand with the American Red Cross on multiple occasions to help families that had experienced home fires.
“When the rug is pulled out from underneath you – the little that we give means a lot to them. It’s nice to be able to give them some brightness in such a crappy situation.”
Lester remembers the very first time he experienced working with the Disaster Action Team (DAT). Lester’s team had brought the family back to the station so they could wait there instead of outside. When Red Cross volunteers arrived, they got to work and helped the family to get what they needed. At the time, Lester didn’t understand the scope of what the Red Cross could do for families.
After retiring, Lester enjoyed his time at home and volunteered for Meals on Wheels.
He was reminded of the Red Cross after seeing a post on Facebook. He applied to volunteer and initially focused on training. Eventually, he got directed towards DAT and dove headfirst into preparing for his first deployment.
When Lester joined the Red Cross Kern County and Eastern Sierra Chapter in 2022, he was astounded by all the services that the Red Cross provides across the world.
“When the Red Cross calls and has a need, I will go,” he shared.
He knew his experience as a Fire Captain had given him rare insight into how to respond and make decisions in emergencies.
His first disaster deployment was during March of 2023 when he was asked to help set up a shelter for those affected by the flooding in Lake Isabella. He went without question. When they called again and asked him to be their Government Operations Liaison, he didn’t hesitate to say yes.
“They believed in me, so I knew that I could do it.”
Lester stepped into the role of Government Operations Liaison after only a few months of volunteering for the Red Cross. During the March flooding, Lester regularly attended meetings with the Kern Emergency Operations Center, which is a coalition of county agencies that collaborate to manage local emergencies.
Lester’s role was to ensure that all important information was being passed between the Red Cross and partner agencies during the March disaster response. His wealth of knowledge from working in the Fire Department, along with his months of Disaster Action Team training set him up well to take this role.
“Some people might say it’s initiative, but I’d say it’s what has to be done to get the job done correctly.”
Lester’s dedication to his community has been unwavering since his time serving on the EOC. He has made it his mission to inspire and recruit more Red Cross volunteers in the outlying areas of Kern County, ensuring that these communities are well-prepared for any disaster that may occur. Lester attends multiple community meetings on behalf of the Red Cross and has even created a recruitment binder to help spread the word.
“What’s your passion? What do you like to do? The Red Cross does that.” Lester dedicates his time to recruitment because he believes the Red Cross has a place for everybody.
“I never considered myself a hero because it was my job. That’s not the Red Cross. Many of the people you see volunteering are not being paid. I’ve always defined a hero as someone who does what is not expected of them out of love for people.”
Lester wants everyone to know that the Red Cross is filled with “People with talent with a desire to help others unselfishly and it’s an honor to be amongst them.”
Lester’s dedication to helping others during all stages of his life is a shining example of what it means to be a Red Cross volunteer.
If Lester’s story has inspired you to help your community be well-prepared for disasters, volunteer with the Red Cross today.
Red Cross Central California Blog 