Chemeketa Voices
Dreaming Bigger:
Alfredo Mendez
Alfredo Mendez was quite content was with his job as an intake officer and public relations liaison for the mayor’s office in Puebla, Puebla, Mexico. Then he went and fell in love.
“I like to serve. Service is the best. Little by little, we were able to make change,” said Mendez.
He met his future wife, Alexis, while she was studying in Oaxaca, Mexico. After she returned to Oregon and after four years of a long distance relationship, she told him that, if they were serious, it was time to come up with a plan for being together.
Alexis wanted to live in the U.S. and Mendez didn’t have much of a preference as long as they were together. She asked, “What will you do if you move here?”
“I said I could wash dishes or mow lawns,” Mendez replied. “I can do jobs that don’t require me to speak English.”
Alexis knew he could dream bigger. She saw the passion with which he approached his public service job, and one of her first instincts was firefighting. She asked what he thought of the idea, but Mendez didn’t exactly cartwheel in excitement over the chance to run into burning buildings.
“In Mexico, firefighting isn’t viewed as a real profession. We respect the people who choose the job, but it’s not treated the same way it’s treated in the U.S.,” he said. He agreed to give it a shot more because he wanted to be with Alexis than any real desire for the job itself.
“I felt like I knew my limits and this was outside of them, but she believed in me. I figured if she was willing to support me in the effort, I had to give it a try,” Mendez said.
The couple married in 1999 in Mexico and moved to Oregon. A week later, Mendez was taking placement tests for English as a Second Language (ESL) courses at Chemeketa Community College. Mendez had only minor exposure to English speakers before he moved to the U.S., but the results of the tests surprised him.
“I was placed at Level 2 in writing English, and Level 3 for speaking,” he said.
Mendez had two things going for him that allowed him to pick up English quicker than others might. He had an intense desire to learn it so he could communicate better with his wife’s family and other Americans he was meeting. Second, he also found an unexpected advocate in his new father-in-law, Joseph.
“He was my best friend in this country,” said Mendez. “My wife would laugh because he asked ‘stupid’ questions when we first met, like ‘does it snow in Puebla,’ and ‘did we have airplanes?’ But I wasn’t bothered at all, I was just honored that he was interested in me,” said Mendez.
Before the couple’s wedding, Joseph started learning Spanish on his own because he wanted to be able to communicate with Mendez and his family.
Mendez spent 18 months perfecting his English skills, and then started taking general classes such as math, writing and sciences. At the same time, he began taking prerequisite courses for the firefighting program. As soon as he was accepted into the firefighting program, he began prerequisite coursework in Chemeketa’s paramedic program as well.
He graduated with an associate’s degree in fire science in June 2005 and started in the paramedic program the following fall. Then he hit a language barrier of a different sort.
“In the paramedic program you speak English and medical language. I would do well in the field, but when it came to the written tests, I struggled,” he said. “Even though I struggled, I received nothing but encouragement from my instructors and classmates. That’s what always made Chemeketa feel like a home.”
His difficulties in class made it easier to consider an opportunity mentioned by the director of Chemeketa’s fire science program. The Salem Fire Department was looking for a bilingual fire safety specialist. Mendez applied for the position and was hired in short order.
It was Mendez’s job to make contact with local Hispanic populations and find ways to educate them about fire safety. It’s a vital service to the Hispanic population because of cultural differences between Latin America and the United States.
“Construction is very different,” said Mendez. “In Mexico, most of our buildings are made of brick, but up here everything is combustible.”
He would visit elementary and middle schools to educate students about fire safety, as well. Gradually, Mendez came to realize that he might be able to have more of an impact on the fire prevention side of the business than in suppression.
“I thought, ‘This is my call. This is what I was meant to be doing,’” he said.
The Salem Fire Department position was funded by a grant and ended after eight months. A brief stint as an emergency medical technician waiting for emergency calls in a Woodburn ambulance only served to convince him that his future lay in fire prevention.
When a deputy fire marshal position opened up with Marion County Fire Dist No. 1, it only made sense to apply. He was one of a dozen to apply for the position and only three or four to make the final cut for interviewing. Mendez started the job in January 2007.
As deputy fire marshal, Mendez fills his days inspecting businesses, warehouses, churches and other medium- to high-occupancy buildings for possible dangers to life or limb. The position requires a measure of foresight. Immediate hazards, like an overloaded electrical outlet, are often quite obvious, but Mendez is also keenly aware of potential problems firefighters might encounter if a building is engulfed in flames.
In all, Mendez spent six years taking classes at Chemeketa paving the way for his new career. In addition, he’s become a father to a daughter, Ivy Emma, and son, Joseph Eleazar, named in honor of Mendez’s beloved father-in-law, who passed away before Joseph was born.
Despite the challenges he’s faced, Mendez still believes that he’s incredibly fortunate.
“Since the first day that I arrived in America it has been blessing after blessing. Chemeketa was one of many. I’m proud to be a Chemeketa alumnus,” he said.
By Eric A. Howald. Have a great Chemeketa story? Send us an e-mail.
Updated September 26, 2008 by Marketing and Student Recruitment.