SFFD Chief Jeanine Nicholson humbled at retirement tribute; "I put my all into it, folks"
As if it were just another day at work, San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson spoke to city leaders and colleagues who had gathered to celebrate her retirement at the city's fire department headquarters Wednesday.
Nicholson made the announcement last month, saying it was "due to unforeseen medical circumstances."
Crediting her team, Nicholson ran through a list of the department's accomplishments and future goals, occasionally pausing to shed a tear between applause.
"Y'all are gonna make me cry!" she said. "Sit down. There's no crying in the firehouse."
Nicholson joined SFFD in 1994 as a firefighter in the South of Market and the Western Addition neighborhoods. It was the first step on a career ladder that brought her to the leadership position. She progressed through several roles including paramedic in the Ingleside and Richmond, lieutenant in Bernal Heights, captain in the Financial District and battalion chief in the Sunset and Chinatown.
Nicholson was sworn in as the 26th San Francisco fire chief by Mayor London Breed on May 6, 2019. She was the city's second woman and first openly LGBTQI person in that role.
Breed opened the tribute by acknowledging that she made the right choice.
"I consider it one of my most incredible accomplishments to have selected someone who was so beloved in this department and who has worked in every corner of this department in so many capacities."
Breed listed some of Nicholson's nationally recognized initiatives, including the Street Crisis Response teams, which consist of a specially trained community paramedic, an emergency medical technician and a peer support specialist. The collaborative approach was designed for those people in crisis who do not need a law enforcement response.
"San Francisco was the first to do that work," said Breed. "To help pivot to a new kind of response of the challenges that we have faced in San Francisco is something that has been a model to other parts of the country."
Nicholson replied in thanks for the support that the city and political leaders have provided the fire department and their programs, including training programs, increased staffing and a new fire training facility in Bayview-Hunters Point.
"The training center land. Wow. Thank you, Mayor Breed, for helping us get that that bond to get that piece of land," Nicholson said. "I know that was not easy given, sort of budget deficits, but we were able to secure over 7 acres of land for a training center, and if we don't have a training center. We don't have a department."
Nichols said the fire department hired over 640 people in the last five years, in a department of 1,800 members. She thanked the city for supporting mental and physical health programs for firefighters and EMTs.
"We see a lot of stuff that nobody else sees. And cancer is a big deal as well. How do we prevent that? We've been working to get PFAS-free turnouts," said Nicholson, who is a breast cancer survivor.
She was referring to a unanimous vote by the city's Board of Supervisors on an ordinance mandating that all outer protective clothing, or turnouts, must be PFAS-free by June 30, 2026. Polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are fire retardant chemicals that researchers have linked to cancer in firefighters.
Nicholson has helped change the face of SFFD. She was hired during a court-ordered consent decree to diversify the department.
"I was fortunate enough to get hired then," she said. "I also am a woman in a man's profession, also being from the LGBTQ community, I've been on the receiving end of some of that stuff."
The department emerged from court supervision in 1999, but Nicholson's impact on racial equity will certainly be among her legacies. She organized panels of firefighters, paramedics and EMTs to interview hires, rather than just herself. She initiated the City EMT program, for at-risk youth from 18 to 26, which brings typically black and brown candidates in for an EMT class and provides wraparound services.
"Because we're not just about diversity, we're about equity," she said. "Some folks didn't have the same experience as I had growing up, where they had access to a good education, access to a crime-free neighborhood. We wanted to give folks everything that they needed, whether it was trauma counseling, life coaching, financial literacy, whatever to make them, as capable as possible, in succeeding."
Nicholson said the department has hired 25 out of 100 graduates from City EMT.
"Twenty-five people have gotten a step into the middle class in this fire department," she said, concluding her remarks with a subtle ask.
"We do need a fleet replacement plan," said Nicholson. "That is my numero uno. I'm sure somebody will be bugging you about that, mayor, in the future. If not me, might be me. I don't know."
Pausing to wipe tears as the room stood in applause, "I got lucky to be of service my whole career. Like, who gets to do that? To be of service their whole career? I put my all into it, folks. I really did."