2020 Firefighter of the Year

We are very pleased to announce our 2020 Firefighter of the Year Tracy Leyva! Tracy Tracy has gone beyond his duties to ensure a safer community for our residents. Over the past few years Tracy has worked on educating himself on the issues and solutions to the risks associated with the Wildland Urban Interface. He has done this by attending conferences and trainings, as well as connecting with nearby community members who have successfully implemented programming in their community. He has then worked hard on sharing that information with other staff members, city leaders, corporate interests, and residents who live in the WUI.
He frequently checks in with local HOA's to discuss the importance of mitigation and emergency evacuation planning. He has given presentations to community members and has physically gone door to door to talk with residents about the importance of mitigating the space behind their fences as a fire barrier. His efforts were highlighted this year when we had the large grass fire near Spring Mesa. Many of the properties were saved by the fire barrier created in thanks to Tracy's on the ground proactive efforts and education. After the fire Tracy went around to the properties effected to share information about the success of proper mitigation and to share information on Code Red. He does all these things on his free time. Tracy has the dedication and passion to effect change and his work has already proven to increase an awareness and desire of local community members to mitigate the high dry grasses that pose a serious threat to the communities on the western side of the district. His efforts around mitigation have already proven to have saved property during the Spring Mesa fire. His actions have embodied our mission of saving life, property, and the environment. There is no doubt that his continued work will create positive change for those communities.
Further, Tracy has attended courses at the National Fire Academy and has even been sought out as a potential instructor due to his knowledge and passion for reducing risk in the WUI.