‘There’s No Turf Out in the Forest’ : ANDRE RAINEY

There’s no turf out in the forest. The fire is the enemy, the fire is what gets you. When you’re out there fighting, you just want to get it over with and go home. Even though you want to rest, you also want the chance to get out and do it again.

I’m not active in the (gang) anymore, but I’m still in the hood. Guys ask me about what I do, and I tell them, “It’s a job, something to do and get paid.” They know me and they respect that. I tell them that one day I may be putting out fires in their apartment buildings.

The work was a little difficult. You just have to be prepared to go out there and take it. There’s one woman, and she’s been doing great.

I’m from Los Angeles, from Baldwin Hills Village, what some people call “The Jungle.” In the firefighting group, there are a lot of guys from different gangs, different sets--from the Eastside, Jordan Downs and other places. I was in a gang myself. Before I got in the firefighting program, I was just trying to get my head straight. I had got in a little trouble here and there. When I found out about the program, I decided to try and be a part of it.

I heard about this program from my friend, counselor Tee Rodgers. I didn’t know anything about the job--just that it was something to do, something new to see. I wanted the chance to see new things.

I had heard there were different gang members in the group, but that didn’t stop me. I figured everyone was coming to do a job. I figured everyone should have respect for themselves and everybody else.

The training wasn’t too bad, a little rough at times. I had been camping before, been on hikes, but that was it in terms of experience working outdoors.

Everyone got along well. There was no favoritism. Everybody got called what they wanted to be called, wore their own color bandanna and spoke their own mind. I’m a straight man, I speak my mind myself. But we got along well, and everybody looked out for everyone else’s safety. It’s like being part of a professional football team, where everybody has different positions but they work as one.

I’ve been on three fires now. I just worry about keeping up the pace, making sure everything is right so that everybody is safe and we can all come home. It feels good to accomplish a mission: put out the fire, do all the work, come through it safe and be able to go back to our families.

I like getting those unexpected calls to come fight a fire. They make you feel like you’re someone. You may be partying, but when you get that call, you switch over to another mode just like that. “Hey, somebody out there needs you.” I feel a lot of satisfaction in that.

It’s keeping me out of trouble. It’s getting me paid. And it’s keeping something going for me, lets me know the world is still turning. It’s been tough out here. I didn’t get to graduate high school, but I’m trying to maintain, pick up books here and there.

What I would really like is this firefighting thing to turn into a career for me. You never know what might happen.