'Overwhelmingly joyful' cadets become new class of St. Paul firefighters

Since high school, 23-year-old Savonarei Hodges has been in love with firefighting.

It took years to chase that dream, but Hodges and seven of her classmates reached it Wednesday as they were inducted into the St. Paul Fire Department.

"It was overwhelmingly joyful," Hodges said of the ceremony. "I'm very glad that I chose this path, and I can't wait to see where I go from here and what else I can do."

Hodges' journey to becoming a firefighter began when she was falling off course at Osseo Senior High School. An uncle, who was a captain with the St. Paul Fire Department, suggested that she take a ride-along and consider it as a career.

Hodges loved it, climbing the ranks of the department's Explorer's Program, an Emergency Medical Services academy and a paramedics academy to become a St. Paul firefighter.

Hodges and her classmates represent one of four academies hosted by the department this year, which graduated a total of 65 cadets. Unlike those classes, all of Hodges' classmates already work for the city.

"I've wanted to be here for a really long time," said Mark Domann, 32, voted as the top recruit of his class. "It doesn't feel like an individual effort. It feels like I'm kind of speaking for everybody. Everybody's worked a long time for this."

"It's been hard with the pandemic especially, trying to get your [Emergency Medical Technician certification] and then realizing that the whole entire world is shutting down," Witt said. "It's just like a blessing … seems like everything's just really fallen into place, and I couldn't be more grateful."

Although Hodges' class is the smallest of this year's academies, officials reminded them of how important they are.

For St. Paul Fire Department Chief Butch Inks, public service grows more important than ever. This year alone the department fielded more than 60,000 calls for service.

"Our run volume has significantly increased since I first joined the department, and so has the variety of emergencies we respond to," Inks said. "This job will challenge all of you in many different ways. Keep your bonds strong. Look to each other for support and take care of each other, because this profession is much bigger than just responding to fires."

After making their pledges the eight cadets were recognized as St. Paul firefighters with a roar of cheers and applause from dozens of family and friends.