"There must be something in the water": Fire dept. welcomes 6 babies in 7 months
“There must be something in the water” is a joke firefighters at the Mediapolis Fire Department in Iowa hear all too often. After all, they have welcomed 6 babies in the past 7 months alone.
Though the volunteer firefighters have always considered each other family, they said the births of their children this close together wasn’t planned. It just sort of happened.
And they’re glad it did.
“Not only do we all volunteer together at the fire department, but we also are all friends outside of the fire service,” Tom Brockett, father of 3-week-old Neva Jean, told CBS News. “It’s a brotherhood that goes beyond the fire station.”
One by one, since August, the firefighters each announced another baby on the way.
“It was a surprise every time someone else announced that they were expecting,” Brockett said.
After the arrival of Brockett’s daughter Neva Jean — the youngest of the group — he and his fellow firefighters Cody Tisor, Seth Eberhardt, Troy Garrison, Skyler Schwerin and Adam Welp decided to show off all six their adorable kids in a photo shoot.
Photographer Debbie Brissey, a friend to several of the men, volunteered to take the photos at the fire station.
Brissey had worked with babies before — never 6 at one time, but she was up to the challenge.
It was “organized chaos” with diaper changes, feedings and some tears, but eventually Brissey said she was able to capture perfect shots of each and every baby: Easton Tisor, 7 months; Mia Eberhardy, 5 months; Emma Garrison, 4 months; Harrison Schwerin, 3.5 months; Kalvin Welp, 6 weeks; and Neva Brockett, 3 weeks.
“When I look at the babies I see a committed family,” she said. “I hope that people see that brotherhood through these photos.”
With a population of around 1,500 people in their small Iowa city, Brockett says he knows the little ones will all be friends for a long time.
“They will grow up around each other not only in our small school system, but also in the firehouse,” he said.
Brockett said that while his daughter may be the latest addition to fire department’s small family, she certainly won’t be the last. There are 22 firefighters within the department, so there are bound to be more kids running around soon.
“We apparently didn’t have enough fire calls,” said Brockett, adding that’s another joke the fire department has been hearing a lot lately.