Coming to the rescue

When it came time to talk about all they’ve done to reach out to the community, neither man was too eager to pat himself on the back.

On one side, there’s Newport Beach Fire Department Capt. Ron Gutierrez, who more than 10 years ago took the lead in organizing the department’s outreach for local fundraising events.

On the other, there’s Capt. Carlos Medina, who took over Gutierrez’s role within the department a few years ago. Together, the men share the common trait of wanting to help others and having the motivation to make it happen.

Sometimes, scheduling department appearances and getting personnel to attend is like “herding cats,” Medina said with a laugh Wednesday.

Newport Beach firefighters attend a charity event or fundraiser about twice a month on their off-time. Neither the department nor the firefighter’s union gets any money for helping out.

“There’s an altruistic spirit in all of us. Giving feels good, helping feels good,” Medina said.

Mostly through the firefighter association, but sometimes as a department-sanctioned event, Newport Beach firefighters are out on weekends barbecuing, teaching and connecting with the community to raise funds for various events.

Every year, firefighters are out for the Race for the Cure event, raising funds for cancer research and treatment, or are working with local Boy Scouts or burn victim charities.

It wasn’t always like this, Medina said.

“It was like a pancake breakfast here or there,” Medina said of the department’s work years ago. “Gutierrez resurrected a dying program.”

Gutierrez described himself as a man passionate to help people. He couldn’t put his finger on why he loves to do it, it’s just always been that way.

“You find a need, and you fill it,” he said.

Still the new guy in the department in the late ’90s, Gutierrez approached the union board and suggested they form an events committee to organize community outreach. The union thought it was a great idea, then assigned the task to Gutierrez.

“I learned right away sometimes you got to keep your mouth shut,” he said with a laugh.

For the next several years, his job was to corral firefighters into participating in weekend events when they weren’t working. Now, so many businesses and organizations tap the department for help, they have to turn down invitations.

“I wish we could work with all of them, but it’s just not physically possible,” Gutierrez said.

It’s the kind of work Medina said attracted him to being a firefighter.

“This is the first line of defense if somebody’s having a bad day. We can effect change in their lives and make it a better day,” he said.

Before becoming a firefighter, Medina was a manager at a gym. Firefighters who worked out there planted a seed in his head.

Medina said he always wanted to help people, but didn’t know how.

“I never had an opportunity. This kind of opened up that door for me,” he said.

The public will have an opportunity to see their firefighters giving back later this week when they work as waiters at Ruby’s Diner on the Balboa Pier Feb. 24. The restaurant will donate 20% of the night’s proceeds to the American Red Cross’ Haitian Relief Fund.