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Asian Firefighters Association outlines recruitment, mentoring and community outreach at Fire Commission
Summary
At the Oct. 10 Fire Commission meeting, John Choi, president of the Asian Firefighters Association, described the group's recruiting and mentorship efforts and community events that the association uses to reach diverse candidates for the San Francisco Fire Department.
John Choi, president of the Asian Firefighters Association, told the San Francisco Fire Commission on Oct. 10 that the association focuses on recruiting Asian and other minority candidates, mentoring members for promotion and running community outreach events to build ties with residents.
"Our mission is to create and maintain equality of opportunity for Asians and other minorities within the fire service throughout the city," Choi said, outlining recruiting booths at the Cherry Blossom Festival, Dragon Boat races and partnership work with the department's Community Outreach and Education program.
Chief Joanne Hayes White praised the association's work at the meeting, calling the AFA's membership and activities "very valued members of our department." Choi listed the AFA executive board and noted the association subsidizes a portion of training tuition for members taking promotional or specialty courses; commissioners and AFA leaders described the subsidy as a modest, capped amount (Choi said it was about $50 per class).
Commissioners asked about membership rules and partnerships. Choi said the AFA accepts associate and retired members who are not active SFFD firefighters and that much of the group's outreach is grassroots contact at community events. Director Jonathan Honda, a firefighter-paramedic and AFA director, described the mentorship role the association played in his career and urged continued outreach to create "a flow path for people" into suppression roles.
The presentation prompted commissioners to recommend closer coordination with other employee organizations and youth recruitment programs to better funnel interested young people into existing training pipelines. No formal action was taken; commissioners thanked the AFA for the presentation and invited further engagement with department recruitment staff.
The commission scheduled no follow-up vote on this presentation but added related recruitment and outreach items to future meeting agendas and asked that organizations coordinate with the department's recruitment coordinator.
