Verdugo Fire Academy holds graduation event

For Burbank resident Kody Jensen, becoming a firefighter has been a lifelong dream that was inspired by the 28-year career of his grandfather Bill Jensen with the Glendale Fire Department.

In 1996, Bill Jensen was severely burned in the line of duty. But rather than deterring him, the incident galvanized his pursuit of his firefighting dream.

“When he got burned, the community kind of revolved around him,” Kody Jensen said. “So, since I’ve been a kid, I’ve wanted to be a firefighter. I just want to be out in the streets, helping the community.”

On Saturday, Kody Jensen took another step toward making that dream a reality, as he and 39 other cadets were welcomed by veteran firefighters into their brethren during the Verdugo Fire Academy’s graduation ceremony at Glendale Community College.

The cadets make up the 17th class to graduate from the academy, which is sponsored by the Glendale Fire Department and Glendale Community College and is supported by several local fire agencies.

To get to this point, the cadets put in approximately 926 hours of physical and academic work, according to academy Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna, who said classes typically begin with around 50 to 60 cadets and end with 35 to 40 trained and certified firefighters.

The cadets train in every skill of firefighting, including ladder work, live fire exercises and vehicle extraction. DiGiovanna said they also receive 10 state certifications, from handling hazardous materials to urban search-and-rescue.

During the ceremony, a handful of cadets spoke not only about the physical and academic challenges, but the sacrifices they had to make in their personal lives.

“My wife and I had been married for about five months. We were just starting to get to know each other,” Darryl Harris said. “Convincing my wife that I was going to spend every weekend away from her during that year was not an easy conversation. However, we both understood that the sacrifice would pay off in our future.”

The challenge of the fire academy, though, was made slightly easier for brothers Sergey and Varuzhan Gasparyan, who live in La Crescenta.

Sergey Gasparyan, 21, was initially part of the academy’s 16th class.

“I wasn’t physically fit and I ended up dropping out,” he said.

This time around, Sergey Gasparyan said having his brother by his side motivated him to finish.

“It was much easier and much better because we always had each other to talk to,” he said. “We were pretty much the only people who had a friendship coming in. It was huge.”

Varuzhan Gasparyan, 23, said he had been inspired to become a firefighter ever since being involved in a serious car accident in 2010.

“I flipped down a mountain. The first people I came across were firefighters and paramedics,” he said. “They opened my eyes because they were so calm and they knew how to take charge and control everything. They were being professional and organized, and I loved that.”

Looking back, Bill Jensen believes that for his grandson, seeing his grandfather in the hospital was the launching point for a career in firefighting.

“It kind of put that little spark in the system,” Bill Jensen said. “Seeing what service to help others can do, it pushed him forward.”

At the graduation ceremony, Bill Jensen was there supporting his grandson.

“Probably the proudest moment of my life,” he said. “I hope that now he can get on a local department some place and have a wonderful career.”