Photo Gallery: Verdugo Fire Academy graduation

Academy chief Sam DiGiovanna, left, gives diploma to graduate Steve Hernandez during Verdugo Fire Academy Class XVI graduation ceremony at Glendale College in Glendale on Saturday, January 4, 2014. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

Jan. 4, 2014 4:39 PM PT

Forty-one cadets graduating from the Verdugo Fire Academy on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2014, after an intensive yearlong training program, which officials compared to a “bootcamp.” The ceremony was dedicated to the 19 Arizona “hotshots” killed in June 2013 in the Yarnell Hill wildfire.

Photo Gallery: Verdugo Fire Academy graduation

Class XVI graduates Elena Lozano, left, and Lacey Morgan, center, show their joy during Verdugo Fire Academy Class XVI graduation ceremony at Glendale College in Glendale on Saturday, January 4, 2014. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

Class XVI graduate Michael Covington sang the National Anthem during Verdugo Fire Academy Class XVI graduation ceremony at Glendale College in Glendale on Saturday, January 4, 2014. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

The Verdugo Fire Academy Class XVI had its graduation ceremony at Glendale College in Glendale on Saturday, January 4, 2014. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

Class XVI graduate Donshay Luke recevied the community service award during the Verdugo Fire Academy Class XVI graduation ceremony at Glendale College in Glendale on Saturday, January 4, 2014. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)

Fire academy chief Sam DiGiovanna, left, congratulates the graduating class during Verdugo Fire Academy Class XVI graduation ceremony at Glendale College in Glendale on Saturday, January 4, 2014. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer)