What were the chances an association with a “little old teacher” at Washington State University would lead Steven Wright on a road decades later to become fire chief of South Kitsap Fire and Rescue?

Excellent, actually.

Wright was a University Place, Wash., resident, graduate of Curtis High School and WSU student when, not knowing what he wanted to do for a career, he turned to a “little old lady who taught a career studies class,” he said.

After he took a battery of tests during the class, the teacher shared with Wright her prophetic opinion: “You should be a firefighter.

”Based on his past as a Boy Scout, competitive swimmer and with a personality attuned to serving others, it seems today quite reasonable the now-52-year-old Wright’s 29-year career as a firefighter was fait accompli.

But according to Wright, his future career — and elevation to fire chief — was never written in the cards: “It was never my ambition to become fire chief,” Wright said.

“I just always wanted to improve my talents and skills and become as good as I could during my career.”His teacher’s recommendation intrigued him, however. He jumped at the chance and attended a resident firefighting program in Pierce County and at the Bates Technical College.  After taking 17 exams with many fire departments in Western Washington, Wright was successful on his 18th — at South Kitsap.

“I didn’t know where [South Kitsap) was,” he said of what was then a mostly rural area primarily staffed by a volunteer team of firefighters and a few career firefighters.Wright quickly made a home at South Kitsap and continued to learn.

He earned a fire command administration degree at Olympic College and completed his bachelor’s degree through Sub Base Bangor. After many years as a lieutenant, Wright was named fire chief by the district’s board of commissioners, who he says has been “very supportive in my progression.”

His desire for additional training continues. Wright finished a four-year executive fire officer program two years ago with the National Fire Academy in Maryland.

“I assume I’m not going to stop seeking lifelong educational experiences until I retire,” Wright added.

The chief’s office at the Orchard Heights fire station is where Wright resides today. The first chief who has spent his entire career with the district, he leads a team of 93 team members: 73 first responders and 20 support staff, which includes office support, mechanics and administrators. The territory the team covers is daunting — 117 square miles, the vast majority of it rural. Wright leads six fire department sections, three manned and three unmanned, which are covered by a group of 75 volunteer first responders.

The job is immense and the responsibilities are eye-opening. But Wright says his group of firefighters, who also are certified EMTs, are dedicated and skilled.

Significant changes have taken place over 30 years in both the South Kitsap region in general and South Kitsap Fire and Rescue. Wright said the region is transitioning from a largely rural area to one that is a mix of rural, sections with 2-1/2 to 5-acre parcels, suburban and townships.

Because of the disparity in areas within the south county, Wright said its citizens have different expectations for the level of service they receive. “The service varies from community to community,” he said. Where a fire station may be just a few miles from a homeowner suffering a heart attack, others in more rural sections are many more miles away from the department’s 12 stations.

Wright said EMT calls represent 75 percent of the 25 calls the firefighter/EMT teams respond to each day.

Because of the wide-ranging nature of the county, South Kitsap Fire and Rescue has developed a county tech rescue team, comprising team members from all fire departments who’ve received advanced training. “Our six fire departments don’t need a stand-up rescue team for themselves,” Wright said. “As a coop, all six of us have a collective need once in a while.”

But because, as Wright says, “People generate calls,” 25 percent of all calls are from the suburban/urban Port Orchard area. Those calls are usually handled by stations at Treemont, Orchard Heights and Gorst.

“Growth happens,” he said. “The call volume has increased. We’re becoming more suburban from our rural beginnings” in 1946 when South Kitsap Fire and Rescue was organized.

To serve the growing population in the district and its rising expectations for service, continuous training is paramount, Wright said.

“Today there’s a much higher level of training compared even to 20 years ago,” he said. “Everyone on our staff, career and volunteers, are cross-trained as firefighters and medical. Everyone qualifies as an EMT.

“Our volunteers are a very dedicated group and have a high level of commitment. They provide a broad range of services: attending to water trucks, providing air-tank support and resupplying rehab items.”

The corps of volunteers also include a rotating group of five to six area chaplains, who attend to the human side of firefighting: the grieving families of victims, the aggrieved and even traumatized first responders.

“We have 72,000 people who are going to go about their day today, but there’ll be someone who may fall off their motorcycle and get injured,” Wright said. “We are the ones who respond to that.”

Wright said that firefighters want to focus on the person facing a calamitous situation, but they have other issues to contend with. “For these people, it’s often the worst day of their life,” the fire chief said. “Our chaplains tend to them. It’s a tremendous part of their program.

“Every one of us will tell you that we recognize that life is fragile and short,” Wright said. “What I’ve learned in this job is that growing old is a privilege, not a guarantee.”

As Wright goes about his job as South Kitsap fire chief, he doesn’t have look far for someone to consult with about firefighting issues. His younger brother Keith followed him into what has become somewhat of a “family” business. Keith Wright is fire chief of the Central Pierce (County) Fire and Rescue organization. And Steve’s son, John, has started his own career journey: he’s started a four-year EMT firefighting program at Central Washington University in Ellensburg.