San Diego Fire Fighters Podcast
Aug 4, 2026 · 25 min · 9 segments
On this episode of the San Diego Fire Fighters podcast, we welcome Sara Berns, Executive Director for SDFRA and Firefighter Aid. For over 100 years, the San Diego Fire Relief Association has been…
Sara BernsGuestOne of the things that we have as Local 145 is the Community Responsibility Fund, and it's an incredible tool that we use to reach the communities that we serve and give back.
So George, can you walk us through a little bit of the history and what it means to the community and Local 145, the Community Responsibility Fund?
What we came to understand back in the 80s, right, is we're an integral part of the community.
And with that, we can't just say that, right? We have to be out in those communities supporting them.
Go to events, support our communities in ways never envisioned in terms of labor.
No, that's great.
And there's so many things that the Community Responsibility Fund really champions.
For instance, the Byrne Institute, United Cerebral Palsy, Firefighter Aid, and the American Red Cross.
And as a matter of fact, annually, we give approximately $40,000 to the Byrne Institute.
And the Byrne Institute, obviously, their work is incredibly important in terms of what we do.
Whenever we have families or... adults or children that suffer through a house fire, and they have those injuries, those burn injuries.
And as we know, burn injuries take a tremendous toll on the human body.
And the human psychology aspect of it, where when you have these scars, I believe one of their biggest...
And it is an incredible program that many of our firefighters will spend their time volunteering at to really mentor and help these individuals work through some of these traumatic life experiences.
And we've had so many people that have been through that camp that really articulate a new lease on life, right? I'm sure you've heard some of the stories through our members and through the people that have attended.
Yes.
Yes.
One of the things that we have as Local 145 is the Community Responsibility Fund, and it's an incredible tool that we use to reach the communities that we serve and give back.
So George, can you walk us through a little bit of the history and what it means to the community and Local 145, the Community Responsibility Fund?
What we came to understand back in the 80s, right, is we're an integral part of the community.
And with that, we can't just say that, right? We have to be out in those communities supporting them.
Go to events, support our communities in ways never envisioned in terms of labor.
No, that's great.
And there's so many things that the Community Responsibility Fund really champions.
For instance, the Byrne Institute, United Cerebral Palsy, Firefighter Aid, and the American Red Cross.
And as a matter of fact, annually, we give approximately $40,000 to the Byrne Institute.
And the Byrne Institute, obviously, their work is incredibly important in terms of what we do.
Whenever we have families or... adults or children that suffer through a house fire, and they have those injuries, those burn injuries.
And as we know, burn injuries take a tremendous toll on the human body.
And the human psychology aspect of it, where when you have these scars, I believe one of their biggest...
And it is an incredible program that many of our firefighters will spend their time volunteering at to really mentor and help these individuals work through some of these traumatic life experiences.
And we've had so many people that have been through that camp that really articulate a new lease on life, right? I'm sure you've heard some of the stories through our members and through the people that have attended.
Yes.
Yes.
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