Volunteer Spotlight: Docent Reggie Lee
Reggie Lee is an AAFFM Docent with 50 years of fire service experience. His career began in 1974 when he was hired as a Fire Control Laborer, and later hired into an academy class in 1975. Lee’s career highlights include working at LA County Station 73 in Newhall, which later became Santa Clarita. After his promotion to Firefighter Specialist in 1982, Lee worked the Urban Search and Rescue vehicle in La Canada Flintridge, in Rosemead, Florence Firestone, and Southgate. Lee achieved two promotions within three years: Battalion Chief in 2000 and Assistant Fire Chief in 2003. These positions took him to Technical Operations in Covina and LA County FD Division 7. This latter assigning him to Malibu, Universal Studios, West Hollywood, Marina Del Rey, Agoura Hills, Hidden Hills, Windsor Hills, Calabasas, and Westlake Village.
During his career, Lee was deployed to assist during multiple historical events: the Los Angeles uprisings, Hurricane Iniki in Hawaii, the Oklahoma City bombing, New Orleans for Hurricane Katrina, and taught at the Justice Department post-9/11. Lee also learned valuable lessons throughout his career. He states he was lucky to be on the cutting edge of new tools and technology. He learned from the people around him, and different ways to view himself and the world around him, including other jurisdictions.
As a Docent at the African American Firefighter Museum, Lee enjoys giving tours to visitors because it allows him the opportunity to learn about the history from a different perspective each tour. Interacting with guests opens the door to see how people from other communities understand and process the historical information. He also enjoys learning from visitors.
