Alan Styles
Alan is a 4th generation firefighter – he was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. Over the course of his career, which started in the late 80’s, he covered all aspects of firefighting/EMS – including rural, suburban, “Paid-on-Call” and Career, holding multiple positions including as a FF, Medic, Company and Command Officer. Alan also spent 10 years at a Level 1 Trauma Center as a Paramedic and EMS Educator during his tenure.
Alan holds degrees in Fire Service and EMS Management with minors in Psychology & Sociology. He has training certificates in Fire and EMS from several institutions in Illinois, Michigan and the National Fire Academy.
During his 30+ years in the fire service, Alan has developed many skills, with several specialties in ladder and heavy rescue work. Alan also lectures on mental wellness of first responders, as well on career motivation not only for firefighters and their departments, but also other types of organizations.
In 2010, Alan accepted the Fire Chiefs’ position in Dalton Township and moved with his family to Michigan. Alan is the Past Presidents of the Muskegon Area Fire Chiefs, Michigan MABAS, Western Michigan Association of Fire Chiefs, and is a past Council Member of the Michigan Firefighters Training Council representing the Michigan Association of Fire Chiefs.
He and wife of 25 years, Ann have two adult sons Cody & Casey (Cody is special needs, with autism and is developmentally delayed, but an amazing kid. Casey has followed in his father’s footsteps and joined the fire service and currently works for the City of Memphis TN FD assigned to Truck 23).
Ask anyone who knows him, and they’ll say he is always “Wide Open” and confirm Alan’s motto is: “We don’t train ’til we get it right; we train ’til we can’t get it wrong.”
Alan Styles's Courses
What: This class is designed to give you the basic tools to understand, recognize, and react appropriately to signs that you or someone you know is dealing with more than they can psychologically and emotionally handle.
Who: This class is for all first responders, including dispatch, who are genuinely interested in being a first line of help for those other first responders that may be struggling with the daily stresses of life, or the tragedy of just one bad call.
Why: Too many first responders feel they have nowhere to turn, resulting in unnecessary struggles or suicide. We need to be better at taking care of each other!
Ideally, every firefighter on the fireground should have a very good working knowledge of the basics of RIT and Firefighter Survival and Rescue techniques. Along with this, they should also have a deep personal appreciation for the importance and need for safety to exist on the fireground. We should never hear a firefighter say, “I don’t need to worry.” This appreciation for safety should be a fundamental part of their training and show in their actions on the fireground. Yes, the fireground is always inherently dangerous, we need to be cautious, but not so stringent that it effects our abilities to complete our tasks.
Ideally, every firefighter on the fireground should have a good working knowledge of the basic Firefighter Skills and Rescue techniques. Along with this, they should also have a deep personal appreciation for the importance of knowing how to use tools correctly. This class is an in depth look at ladders specifically and need to understand them in a way that most don’t “look” at.