AUBURN, Wash. — Wednesday marked a historic day for King County. Mountain View Fire and Rescue (MVFR) in Auburn appointed Dawn Judkins as its new fire chief. Making her the first woman in King County's history to have the position.
Dozens of people showed up to Wednesday’s Change of Command ceremony held at Fire Station 96. The ceremony not only honored Fire Chief Greg Smith for his over 30 years of service but also appointed Judkins, 51, as the new MVFR chief. Chief Judkins said it's been a long road to get where she is today.
"I'm happy to be the first one, I hope I'm there for the next one, which will be soon,” said Chief Judkins. “I've done a lot in my career to get to this point."
She started her firefighting career in her 30s and worked at the Tukwila Fire Department for 16 years before she started working at her current station, MVFR, for the past 2 1/2 years.
She's honored to lead the station but said she didn't get here without support from countless others.
"I wasn't trying to be the best female firefighter, I really wanted to be the best teammate for all of the folks that I worked with and with all their support, I've gotten to the position I am now," said Chief Judkins.
Judkins said in the past year MVFR hired its first two women firefighters. She hopes more women will follow suit and consider getting into the firefighting field.
"I just want everyone to know girls, teenagers, once you set your mind on something you can do anything you want to do,” said Chief Judkins.
Chief Judkins says her focus as chief will be continuing to work with and serve the surrounding community, hiring the best people for her department and ensuring her team gets home safely and healthy.